A Time of Flares and Shadows
by Magnificent Mega Ampharos
Summary: Serena has adjusted to her life as Kalos League Champion and university student. However, a threat she thought was dealt with three years ago is returning - and this time, fighting back means greater risks and sacrifices. Ship: Lacewood (Serena/Sycamore) Rated T for violence and language.
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone! This is my first attempt at fanfiction in . . . a long time. I'm having lots of fun writing this story, and I hope you enjoy! Reviews and constructive criticism are always appreciated.

* * *

><p><strong>ONE<strong>

The central lawn at the Université de Kalos was the place to be on a cool, sunny autumn afternoon. Students were taking breaks from studying and classes to hang out with friends and play with their Pokemon. On this day in particular, a throng of people – students and faculty alike – had gathered to watch a match between a student and her friend.

"Fire Blast!" called the student to her Charizard, pointing aggressively to her opponent's Absol. Charizard obeyed, inhaling deeply before shooting out the five-pointed formation of fire from its mouth. The attack enveloped Absol, who managed to stand its ground until the flames dissipated, but then collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.

"Absol, return!" the Absol's trainer called as he held out a Pokeball. Absol dematerialized into a stream of white light, shrinking back into the ball.

"Serena wins!" cried out a young man nearby, jumping up and down as high as his feet could propel his rotund body.

The crowd cheered and applauded. Ignoring the noise, Serena recalled her Charizard and crossed the battle space to her opponent.

"Good match as always, Calem," she said, patting him on the shoulder.

"You too," said Calem, tossing his head back to get a lock of black hair out of his face. "Of course, I'm secretly taking notes on your battle style. I will beat you one day."

"Keep telling yourself that!" joked Serena.

Before Calem could say anything else, a petite young woman dressed in a pink shirt came up and threw her arms around his neck. "You did great!" she said to him. He returned the embrace.

"Thanks, Shauna," he said.

After hugging him for a few seconds, Shauna broke free and turned to Serena. "You were great as always, Serena!"

"Thanks! I – whoa!" Serena felt someone grab her by the arm and yank her away from her friends. She soon found herself in the midst of her admirers, who were taking pictures of themselves with her and asking for autographs. She obliged everyone gracefully, as she had become so good at over the past three years, but then broke free of the group after a few minutes.

"Hey guys, can I have, like, ten minutes alone with my friends?" she asked the crowd before grabbing Shauna by the hand and running for the student union. Calem wasn't too far behind them.

Serena, Shauna, and Calem secluded themselves in a corner of the student union, at a table on the opposite side of the room from the wall with the high windows. The three of them were soon joined by Trevor and Tierno.

"Just another day in the life of the Champion, I suppose," sighed Serena as she twirled some of her blonde hair between her fingers. "Do you think it's too late for me to enroll at Hoenn University and go there with you two?" she asked, looking between Calem and Trevor.

"You can't go to Hoenn too, Serena!" cried Shauna.

"I'm only going to be gone for a few months," Calem reminded Shauna. He and Shauna were sitting next to each other, and his arm was draped over the back of her chair.

"And I'm going to work on the Pokedex," said Trevor. "Besides, Serena, if you're serious about concentrating on Pokemon type classifications, Kalos is the place to be. The Fairy Type was discovered here after all."

"I know . . . maybe once I become a boring scientist the media will lose interest in me," said Serena hopefully.

"They haven't lost interest since you started going here," said Tierno.

"I'm probably expected to be a wild college girl and get in all sorts of trouble, though . . . anyway, Calem, who's the guy you're training with in Hoenn?"

"His name's Steven Stone, and I'll have you know he's the –" Calem's sentence was cut off as the familiar obnoxious beeping that preceded a Holo Caster message sounded off. All five of them looked into their bags to see if it was theirs going off; only Serena's was lighting up in addition to making noise.

"Please don't be a journalist," she mumbled before hitting the ANSWER button. A holographic line shot up from the silvery circle in the middle of the device, and from there fanned out until it assumed the miniature shape of a face Serena didn't mind seeing.

_"Hello Serena!" _the holographic Augustine Sycamore greeted her jovially. _"How are you doing?"_

"I'm well, thank you," said Serena. "We're all hanging out here on campus!" The other four took their turns greeting Sycamore, and he greeted them in turn.

"Professor, I leave on the boat from Coumarine on Tuesday, right?" Trevor asked.

_"That's right. It'll be at nine o'clock, bright and early,"_ Sycamore reminded him.

"Okay. That's what I thought," said Trevor.

_"Make us all proud, Trevor. I know you will. Anyway, Serena . . . I'm planning an experiment for my current Mega Evolution study, and I was wondering if you would like to help me with it."_Sycamore continued, gesticulating with his right hand as he usually did.

"Of course! Fall Break starts tomorrow, so I have plenty of free time," said Serena.

_"Wonderful! If you're free tonight, meet me at Café Soleil at seven so we can discuss it."_

"Okay. I'll be there." Serena responded.

_"Très bien!"_ Sycamore flashed a smile before his holographic image folded in on itself and shrunk down to the base of the Holo Caster.

Serena stashed the Holo Caster back into her bag, and then looked at her watch. Five thirty.

"I need to leave now to make it back into town on time," she announced before standing up.

"You're not eager for this or anything, are you?" asked Shauna knowingly.

"Why wouldn't I be? It's science! I like science. I'm eager for science and scientific progress and . . . stuff. Of a scientific nature," said Serena as she felt her cheeks warm up.

"Even if you were going to talk to that curmudgeonly old lady who teaches your physiology class?" continued Shauna.

"Of course!" Serena blurted out, certain now that her face was the same shade of pink as her hat. "I gotta go. Catch you guys later." She then dashed out of the student union, past a small group who only realized who she was once she had cleared the doors.

Back at the table, Shauna was telling everyone that it should only take an hour and a half to get from campus to Café Soleil if one wanted to stop by their apartment and freshen up first.

* * *

><p>At seven o'clock that evening, Serena found herself outside the entrance to Café Soleil. She had gone back to her apartment and changed into her gray tie-neck blouse and matching skirt, telling herself that it was a more professional look for a meeting about academic matters. However, she had looked at herself in the mirror before leaving, just to affirm how cute she looked in that outfit.<p>

She peered through the large windows of the café to see if he was in there, but there was no sign of the professor. The only patrons of Soleil at the moment were a group of five people huddled around a tablet as they talked fervently about something. She spent time watching this group, although she couldn't hear what they were saying. One man, who was wearing sunglasses with red frames, exuded passion as he spoke and pointed at figures on the tablet that were undiscernible to Serena from her vantage point.

She soon felt someone tap her on the shoulder, and she turned her head to see who it was.

"Professor, hello!" said Serena, a smile breaking out on her face.

"Bonjour, mon amie," replied Augustine Sycamore. "Are you still doing well?"

"Yeah, I am," said Serena, completely turning her body to face him. "You?"

"No complaints," said Augustine. "Shall we?" He gestured to the entrance of the café, and the two of them entered together.

While Augustine ordered coffee, Serena claimed a table for two in the corner, on the opposite side of the restaurant from the group of five. Even as she walked past them on her way in, she had no idea what they were discussing, as they all spoke in whispers and hushed voices. She kept her eye on the man in sunglasses until Augustine came up to her, a cup of coffee in each hand.

"A latte for you," he said, placing the cream-colored beverage on the table in front of Serena.

"Thank you, Professor," Serena said gratefully. She looked down at her drink, and saw that the barista had used the milk floating on top to draw a Fletchling.

"Please, call me Augustine," he said as he sat down. "You're no longer my student. You're my friend and a colleague now."

"I don't know, that's going to take some getting used to," said Serena before she took a sip of her drink.

"Well, with practice, I'm sure you'll manage." Augustine smirked.

Serena was ready to ask about the experiment, but she found herself distracted by Augustine: that crooked smirk of his, those blue-grey eyes, his brilliant wavy black hair that she had often fantasized about running her fingers through . . . .

"Ah – uh – anyway, _Augustine_, what is this experiment?" she stammered, after mentally comparing the color of his eyes to some of the shades of blue and gray found in her Charizard's Mega Stone.

Augustine chuckled. "It's nothing groundbreaking, really, just data collection.

"When you Mega Evolve your Pokemon, they become stronger, right? To the naked eye, it appears that attacks have more power and cause more damage in battle. I want to attempt to quantify differences in attack power between a standard, unaffected Pokemon and that same Pokemon when it has Mega Evolved. I called you because you're the best Trainer I know and you have three Pokemon capable of Mega Evolution."

"I do?" asked Serena, reviewing the members of her team in her head. Charizard could definitely Mega Evolve, and so could Lucario, but she couldn't think of a third.

"You didn't know Ampharos could Mega Evolve, did you?" continued Augustine. "No worries. I recently got my hands on an Ampharosite, which rounds out my collections of one of each known Mega Stone."

"Amphie'll be excited," said Serena. She took a sip of her coffee, and then noticed that the man in red sunglasses was standing at the counter, waiting for the barista to make his drink.

"Are you going to sample more Pokemon besides mine?" she inquired.

"If I get good results from your Pokemon, I'll call Diantha and have her bring in Gardevoir. I'll call Calem once he comes back from Hoenn. Korrina as well, and if things go really well I'll put out an advertisement for any Trainer with a qualifying Pokemon to come in," explained Augustine.

"There'd be some compensation, I assume," continued Serena.

"Naturally," replied Augustine.

"How much am I being compensated?" asked Serena playfully.

"Oh I don't know . . . I think your coffee cost 50 Pokedollars . . . ."

"So you'll just take everyone else out for coffee." Serena said with mock skepticism.

"Non, Serena. I merely wanted the pleasure of your company tonight. I could have easily explained this experiment in the lab before we did it." When he finished speaking, Augustine flashed a small, crooked smile at her, and she instantly felt that there were Butterfrees in her stomach.

"This is rather nice, isn't it?" said Serena. "Sitting in a quiet café, talking about research, no paparazzi following me around campus trying to figure out every little detail about me, and some one-on-one time with my favorite professor."

"You flatter me, mademoiselle," said Augustine as he rubbed the back of his head. At the same time, a light blush rose on his pale cheeks.

"But worry not. The results of the election will be in later tonight, and the news is too focused on that to care about where Kalos's darling Champion is right now and what she's doing."

"That's tonight?!" Serena blurted out. "Shoot! I was going to watch that!"

"I'm sorry," said Augustine uncertainly. "Perhaps we can run over to the lab really quick and –"

"Don't worry about it," said Serena. "I'll find out anyway, won't I?"

"That is true, I suppose."

From there, their conversations turned to small talk: the latest lab gossip about two interns, a mischievous Froakie that nobody seemed to be able to tame, and the end of midterms at the university. When her stomach began to growl, Serena got up and ordered sandwiches for her and Augustine, giving the two something to eat for dinner and an excuse to stay and talk longer. Somewhere in there, the group of five sitting at the front of the café left.

"It's half past nine," Augustine announced as he checked his watch. "We should probably get going. I want you well rested for testing tomorrow."

The two of them left Café Soleil and made their way down Vernal Avenue. Prism Tower stood proudly in the center of the city, brilliantly lit up against the dark night sky.

"Where did you say your apartment was again?" asked Augustine when the two of them arrived in Centrico Plaza. They stood still for a moment to admire the tower, whose color scheme was alternating between red, blue, and its standard white.

"Just off Estival Avenue," answered Serena.

"If I had known that, I'd have picked a closer café!" jested Augustine.

What followed was the familiar beeping of the Holo Caster. Serena pulled hers out of her bag, and Augustine pulled his from his pocket. Both were going off, and both had messages from Malva. Tonight, she was sitting behind her desk, preparing to give a news update.

"_We now bring you this important new bulletin. The votes are in, they have been counted . . . and the new Governor of Kalos is Alexandre Teleurac."_

Other people out in the plaza could be heard shouting for joy or crying in disappointment.

"That's a bummer," muttered Augustine.

"_Mr. Teleurac is here with me now, and he would like to give a brief address."_

The Holo Caster's camera turned from Malva to the man sitting next to her: he was bald, with a gold earring in one ear, and a self-satisfied smile on his face.

"_Greetings, citizens of Kalos. Thank you for choosing me as your governor for the next term. And to my opponent, Madame Claire Pontmercy. . . well played, and better luck next time."_ His voice was smooth, with a bit of a low rumble to it.

"_Over the next four years, I hope to change Kalos for the better. This will include addressing income inequality that is so rampant in areas of Lumiose City, our depleting natural resources, dwindling habitats for Pokemon as we humans expand our territory, and new sources of energy to power our lives. There are no easy answers to these questions, but over the next four years I hope to have these problems solved for as many people and Pokemon as I can. Thank you, Kalos. I look forward to serving you."_

The Holo Casters switched off. Serena and Augustine stood there in awkward silence, both mulling over what Teleurac had just said.

"I didn't vote for him, but . . . he sounds nice," said Serena tentatively.

Augustine shook his head. "You know very well that nice words and thoughts don't always translate into nice actions."


	2. Chapter 2

**THREE**

The next day, Serena slept in and woke up to a Holo Cast message from her mother. Grace had called to see how midterms had gone, and to ask her daughter's opinion about Teleurac and his new policies. Serena told herself to call her mother back later before she rose from bed and changed into her red-and-black dress.

With Eevee walking alongside her on a leash, Serena left the apartment to go to the Berry Juice shop. At the counter, she let Eevee pick out two berries for his drink, and then drank the resulting colorful shake happily. She ordered two more shakes for Eevee, her ears catching two people in line behind her conversing about their cab ride to the shop. ("That poor driver, suddenly getting laid off from his job!")

Serena and Eevee left the Berry Juice shop once Eevee indicated that he was full, and turned to go down to North Boulevard. The two of them strolled down the street; Eevee greeted a Skiddo that was curled up underneath a tree, and Serena looked around, watching people go about their business. There also seemed to be more police officers out and about than usual; one of them was leaning into the open window of a blue cab, telling the driver that after today he would no longer be driving his cab and instead would be in charge of Gogoat shuttle handling.

As the two of them passed a café, something went _crash_ in a nearby alleyway. Serena bent down, scooped Eevee up in her arms, and dashed to the entrance of the alley. She looked to see that a metal trashcan had been knocked over, rolling lazily on the ground, while another form was lying next to it.

She stepped into the alleyway and walked towards the trash can, Eevee snuggling into her chest for protection. It didn't take long for her to get close enough to see that a man was sprawled out on the ground, not too far from the trashcan. He was perhaps in his mid-twenties; his face was covered in scratches and bite marks, his clothing was singed, and the fabric of the shirt over his right shoulder was completely gone, revealing a spot that was red, pink, and slightly bloody.

"Are you all right?" Serena dropped to her knees by the man's head. She grabbed a Pokeball off her belt and used it to recall Eevee.

The man moaned in pain.

"I'll take that as a no . . . let's get you to a hospital." She reached down, snaked her arms under the man's body and hooked him under his armpits before slowly standing up and turning him so that one of his arms draped around her shoulders.

"The police," breathed the man.

"We can call them too," said Serena reassuringly, walking with him in tow.

"No . . . they did this."

Serena halted. "What?"

"Yes . . . I was arrested yesterday . . . they set some Houndour on me."

Disbelief and disgust rose up inside Serena. "They don't do that!" she snapped.

"They do now. And they took my Pokemon. Name's Bernard, by the way."

"I'm Serena . . . Bernard? Were you the one they arrested yesterday for 'disturbing the peace?'"

"If you call telling a policeman that these new policy changes are unfair 'disturbing the peace,' then yeah" quipped Bernard, his voice still weak.

Serena half-dragged Bernard to Lumiose Hospital, a three-story building located next door to the North Boulevard Pokemon Center. While he was seeing a doctor and having his wounds cleaned up, she sat in a waiting room, which was currently occupied by one other person who had her face buried in a fashion magazine. The television in the corner of the room was playing a rerun of an old sitcom, and Serena passed the time by watching that until Bernard reappeared. There were bandages all over his face, wrapped around his head, covering his right shoulder, and up and down his arms. Some of the bandages were already stained red from blood. The gash on his forehead had been sewn shut.

"Are you good to go?" Serena asked him as she stood up to move to his side.

"Yeah . . . I can go home on my own. Thanks for bringing me here," said Bernard. He readjusted the bandage on his head so it lay on top of his dark hair rather than bare skin at the nape of his neck.

"Don't you want your Pokemon back?" Serena continued.

"Yeah, but . . . I don't want to go back there. It's not a big deal, anyway. The new chief of police is terrifying."

"I'll go talk to them for you, then," offered Serena.

"I don't see what good it'd do, but okay. Whatever."

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry, Miss Carlyle, but I can't release Mr. Lecroux's Pokemon to you."<p>

Serena went on to the Lumiose police station after making sure Bernard got a cab ride home. She went in and spoke to the chief of police herself: Alison Renshaw, a redheaded middle-aged woman who kept an ashtray on her desk and smelled horribly of cigarette smoke.

"Why not?" asked Serena.

"Because you are not Mr. Lecroux," said Renshaw, as if she was explaining to Serena that things got wet when it rained. "If he really wanted his Pokemon back, he would have come to get them himself."

"He's terrified to come back here after what _your_ force's Houndour squad did to him! It's not fair of you to expect that from him." Serena half-shouted, leaning forward and planting her hands on the desk.

Renshaw leaned back in her chair and folded her hands in her lap. "Life isn't fair, Miss Carlyle. Mr. Lecroux learned his lesson, hopefully. If he does not want to cooperate to make our society a better place, he won't be able to enjoy certain privileges . . . like keeping Pokemon. Everyone else will learn from his example. And if I didn't know any better . . . you may need an extra lesson yourself. I don't care if you're the Champion and you heroically saved Kalos from Team Flare three years ago. You are not exempt from the rules and you cannot retrieve an offender's confiscated property for him."

"They're Pokemon, not property." Serena snapped. Renshaw shrugged in response.

"I'm sorry I wasted your time, Chief," said Serena, repressing the urge to yell again. She turned around and stormed out of Renshaw's office.

* * *

><p>Before the cab had gone off with Bernard, Serena had overheard his address. After leaving the police station, she caught a cab and rode to that location, a small apartment building on South Boulevard.<p>

She stepped inside the lobby of the building, noticing the peeling wallpaper and thinking that this place had seen better days. Along the wall were the mailboxes; she saw the back of a man at his mailbox, the white bandages on his head and arms contrasting with his olive skin and dark hair.

"Bernard!" she called out to him.

Bernard jumped, then turned around to see Serena.

"I'm sorry, but . . . the chief will only release your Pokemon to you," lamented Serena as she approached him.

Bernard sighed. His gaze remained downcast, and Serena could see his eyes expressing the internal battle he was having at the moment.

"Well, thanks for trying," he murmured. "Would you like something to drink? My apartment's on this floor here, the first one on the left when you enter the hall."

"That sounds lovely, but I have to go run some errands I've been putting off all day," said Serena, thinking about the going-away party that night.

"Wha – I'm sorry I kept you from those," apologized Bernard.

"No, don't worry! You're more important than my silly grocery list. But here," Serena pulled a scrap of paper and pen out of her bag and scribbled on it before handing it to Bernard. "This is my Holo Caster contact information. Call me if you need anything else at all."

Bernard's mouth formed a faint, sad smile. _"Merci beaucoup."_

Serena smiled back. "Go get some rest, Bernard."

She then left that apartment building, opting to walk back to her own apartment since no cabs were available and letting Eevee back out to walk alongside her. While walking, she replayed the conversation with Chief Renshaw in her head – and then realized that this was perhaps the first time she remembered a minor offender's Pokemon had been taken by the police. It was also unlike the police to have their Houndour squad brutalize detainees. Above all, Renshaw's red hair was too bright for Serena's comfort . . . .

She wondered if Team Flare was slowly making a comeback, but she then pushed that out of her mind, telling herself the whole notion was ridiculous. The Lumiose police may be corrupt, but that did not at all put them on the same level as the organization who tried to destroy the world to make it more beautiful.


	3. Chapter 3

**FOUR**

The going-away party for Calem and Trevor was held in Augustine's office at the laboratory, just as Shauna had said. When Serena walked in, the first thing that caught her attention was how _clean_ the office was: books were actually in shelves instead of lying in haphazard stacks on the floor, paintings were hanging on the wall instead of merely propped up, and it smelled like lavender – mostly because there were a few sprigs of lavender in a vase on the windowsill. His desk was not covered in papers or computers, but trays of finger foods and a few bottles of wine in an ice bucket.

Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor were hanging out next to a long shelf along the wall, examining the collection of round colorful stones arranged there. Calem and his parents were talking with Augustine; Calem stood off to the side awkwardly while his parents discussed a framed magazine hanging on the wall. This magazine, "Newsweek: Kalos" was from three years ago; the front cover depicted Serena and her friends, standing tall and proud next to one another with a title that read "Champions and Heroes: How Five Youths Toppled Team Flare (and Took the Pokemon League by Storm)."

"Yes, Madame Dupont, I am very proud of your son," Augustine was saying to Calem's mother. He was wearing a white dress shirt, an indigo tie, and a gray waistcoat with gray slacks. Serena didn't remember the last time she saw the professor wear something other than his oversized lab coat, and she stopped at the partition for a moment, taken aback by how good he looked. Of course, he still wore those red socks, even with dress shoes.

"Ah, you must be Mademoiselle Serena!" Calem's father was the first to notice Serena's arrival. Everyone else's heads snapped around to face her; while Calem's face fell a little, Augustine's lit up.

"The one and only!" Serena strode over to Monsieur Dupont, smoothing out the skirt of her dress as she did. Once she was close enough to him, Monsieur Dupont took her by the shoulders and kissed her once on both cheeks in a customary Kalosian greeting.

"It is good to finally meet you," said Monsieur Dupont. "Calem talks about you frequently."

"Does he say good things?" asked Serena.

"Mostly," said Calem congenially, smiling as he tried to hide his feeling that he would no longer be the center of attention at his own party.

Serena then turned to greet Calem's mother in the same manner, then went to give all of her friends brief hugs. Calem's parents kept Serena by their side as long as they could, talking at her about her fame and notoriety as the Champion, and how she just _had_ to battle them sometime. Serena nodded and agreed politely to meet their challenges next time they met. When the Duponts began to reminisce about their younger days as Trainers, Serena slinked away and joined Augustine at his desk.

"Professor," she said with a smile. When she breathed in, she caught a whiff of his cologne: sandalwood, mixed with a hint of cinnamon. The scent delighted her senses.

Augustine smiled back at her.

"Hello Serena . . . you look nice," he said, a small blush rising on his cheeks.

"So do you," she returned. "How'd the inspection go?"

Augustine sighed. "Care for a drink?"

"That bad, huh?"

"_Non_, not bad, just . . . irritating." Augustine picked up a bottle of red wine out of the bucket, uncorked it, and poured some of the deep red liquid into two glasses. "I never knew a government agency could form so fast . . . I guess Teleurac prearranged everything, anticipating he would win." He handed a glass to Serena, and held the other in his hand. "Anyway, this overbearing woman comes in, criticizes the light fixtures we have, tells us to get new windows – and to figure out what's nonessential in the laboratory and get rid of it, because we're apparently the second largest drain on energy in Lumiose!" He knocked back a gulp of wine. "Everything here's essential!"

"Did you tell her that?" asked Serena before taking a sip of her own wine.

"Of course I did. She didn't heed what I had to say, so I get to decide which department of research is getting shut down. At the very least, I won't be calling Diantha for my experiment."

"Serena!" Shauna called. "Have you seen the Professor's Mega Stone collection?"

She migrated over to her friends, and looked down the line at the Mega Stones on the shelf.

"Those are all of the known Mega Stones," Augustine commented as he watched his former students examine them. "Minus Ampharosite, of course, but that one is in very capable hands." He winked at Serena.

For the time that followed, Serena interacted with her friends and helped herself to the food and wine. Trevor went on about how excited he was to work with Professor Birch, Calem discussed the Gym Leaders he would be facing in Hoenn and what he could learn from the region's former Champion (while glancing at Shauna occasionally), Shauna went on and on about all the things that she and Serena needed to do in the near future, and Tierno showed off a new dance routine he had been working on with his Pokemon. Calem's parents alternated between interacting with their son and his friends, and talking to Augustine about his research. Serena listened passively, asking a question or two to keep conversations going, but thoughts about Bernard and Chief Renshaw kept resurfacing in her mind. Before she knew it, she had returned to the desk for her third glass of wine.

"Is something on your mind, Serena?" Augustine's voice came from behind her. He had no doubt seen the troubled expression on her face that she tried to hide from everyone else.

"No," Serena said quickly, turning to face him. Noting the concern in his eyes, she felt tempted to confess the truth.

"All right, if you say so." He reached past her, plucking a bottle of champagne from the ice bucket. He opened it, poured the contents into eight champagne glasses, and went around the room distributing the glasses to everyone.

"If I may have your attention everyone," his voice rang out. "At this time I would like to propose a toast to Trevor and Calem. Trevor, as we know, will be representing Sycamore Laboratories in Hoenn as he studies regional differences between Pokemon found in both Hoenn and Kalos with a colleague of mine, Professor Birch. Trevor's a young man after my own heart, with a keen scientific mind and a thirst for knowledge. He'll do well there. And Calem is one of the most gifted trainers I have had the privilege to teach: always striving to be better than he was the day before. I expect great things from him too, and he could not have picked a finer region for training abroad."

Everyone said "Cheers!" in rough unison, raised their glasses to Calem and Trevor, and drank their champagne.

"Thanks Professor," said Calem. "I have something to say." He turned to Shauna.

"Shauna . . . timing's really awful, isn't it? I've picked now of all times to let you steal my heart, right before I'm about to leave for three months. But when I get back . . . would you want to officially go out with me?"

Tierno gasped softly.

Shauna nodded fervently. "Yes!" she squealed, throwing her arms around Calem. He returned the embrace, and everyone else clapped.

Even in heels, Serena was still a head shorter than Augustine, so she raised herself up on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. "I knew it."

Augustine chuckled and patted her on the shoulder.

Suddenly, two Holo Casters started ringing. Calem and Trevor checked their pockets and pulled their Holo Casters out to check the messages they had received.

_"Good evening! This is the Kalos Transportation Service. We regret to inform you that your voyage from Coumarine City to Slateport City that was scheduled for nine o'clock on Tuesday morning has been postponed. All of our ships have been temporarily appropriated by the Department of Environmental Sustainability and are undergoing renovations to become more energy-efficient. We will let you know once your departure has been rescheduled. Please accept our sincerest apologies."_

Both Calem and Trevor groaned.

"They can't do that . . . can they?" Tierno questioned.

"Yeah, that's . . . odd," Serena added.

"We can fly on Altaria to Hoenn, Trevor," suggested Calem.

"Hoenn's too far away. Don't put that stress on your Pokemon," Augustine objected. "I'll call Birch in the morning and tell him what has happened."

Serena noticed that Shauna slipped her hand into Calem's and squeezed it in reassurance. Although she had no idea why this was happening now, thoughts about Team Flare returned. Lysandre's face, his eyes blazing with the same fury and madness that had provided plenty of nightmare fuel over the past three years, made its way into her mind's eye.

"Are you sure nothing's wrong?" Augustine had leaned over so he could address her quietly. Serena then noticed that her hand was gripping the desk's edge so hard that her knuckles were turned white.

"I, uh, just realized that I forgot to feed Eevee." Serena said hastily, setting her glass down. "I need to get going. It was a great party. Call me to reschedule lunch sometime." She gave speedy good-byes to her friends and Calem's parents before bolting to the elevator.

* * *

><p>Back at her apartment, Serena changed out of her party dress into a sleeveless shirt, a hoodie, jeans, and sneakers: all black. She tied her hair back into a ponytail as well.<p>

On her way back, she had stopped by a Pokemon Center and withdrew her Haunter. She had once considered making this Haunter a permanent member of her main team, but put it off just in case a better Ghost-type came along. The prospective Ghost-type never did, and she forgot all about it while she was chasing Team Flare around Lumiose City and Geosenge. Tonight, however, she counted on Haunter to help her with her plan.

She threw up her hood and looked at herself in the mirror, realizing that while her hair was concealed her face was not. The first thing that came to mind was her black scarf, which she had found for cheap at Anistar's boutique and did not wear very often anyway. She tied it around the bottom half of her face to hide her nose and mouth.

Keeping in mind that she would look odd and suspicious walking down the hallways of the apartment building dressed like this, Serena opened the window that faced the inside of an alleyway and climbed out of it, down two stories, and onto the street. From there, she slunk through the town's alleys and back roads until she reached the police station. Lights were on inside, contrasting against the silhouettes of officers inside the building, sitting at their desks and moving around the space.

Serena approached the station from the side, sidling alongside the wall and noting the window next to her head. A stray Skiddo trotted by; once it was gone, she pulled a Pokeball from her belt and released Haunter.

"Haunter," she spoke in a whisper, "Go inside and use Hypnosis on everyone. They all need to be asleep."

Haunter nodded in understanding and floated to the wall, phasing through into the station. Serena watched from the window as all of the people inside fell to the floor and slumped over as they were affected by Hypnosis.

Serena then pushed the window open and climbed through it, landing right next to a man who was fast asleep on the floor.

"Haunter, keep watch. Use Hypnosis on anyone that comes in." she ordered.

She then pulled open every box, cabinet, and drawer she could find, digging through them frantically until realizing that what she was looking for was not in this area. She then rounded the corner to Renshaw's office; luckily, the police chief was not there. Serena went through all of the cabinets and shelves in the office until she found a box labeled "Contraband" underneath the desk. Inside this box was a brown belt with four Pokeballs affixed to it. The belt was tagged "Bernard Lecroux."

Serena grabbed the belt and sprinted out of the office. "Let's go Haunter," she said to her Pokemon before hopping out of the window from which she entered.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hi, everyone! Thanks for reading and reviewing!

To address a question from a reviewer: I always assumed that Lysandre died when the ultimate weapon/Flare HQ caved in towards the end of the game. So in this story he is dead, gone, pushing up the daisies, etc.

* * *

><p><strong>FIVE<strong>

Serena woke up the next morning to the sound of her beeping Holo Caster. She rolled over onto her stomach, stuck her arm out, and felt around on her nightstand until her hand landed on the device. She pressed the "Answer" button.

"You have three new messages." The automated voice of the Holo Caster said. "First message."

"_Breaking news. Last night around nine-thirty, there was a break-in at the Lumiose Police Station. Surveillance cameras caught footage of a hooded, masked person with a Haunter putting those inside the station to sleep via Hypnosis, and then ransacking the entire station until removing an unidentified object from the collection of contraband. Citizens are asked to keep an eye out for suspicious activity and report it at once to the police."_

Serena chortled at the fact that her exploits made the news. She also felt a twinge of panic, wondering if the cameras caught enough of her exposed face to show it was her.

"Next message," said the Holo Caster.

"_Serena, it's Bernard. The police stopped by my apartment this morning – I guess they figured out that my Pokemon were what the thief took from the station last night. I told them I didn't know anything and that I hadn't seen my Pokemon since I was arrested. It was so nerve-wracking. What am I supposed to do? I can't move back to Laverre, not since I got laid off from my job at the factory, and it would look bad if I suddenly left town. Do you think you could find out who took my Pokemon and why? I know it's a lot to ask of you, since you've already done so much for me, but I know you're capable of sleuthing around. Talk to you later, I guess."_

"Next message."

_"Come by the lab today, Serena. We need to talk. You may be able to fool your friends into thinking everything's all right with you, but you can't hide anything from me."_

Serena rose to a sitting position, cursing Augustine under her breath as she did. She glanced over to the Holo Caster just in time to see his holographic image shrink back into the device, and the automated voice say "End of new messages." She got out of bed, showered until the water shut off on her, and got dressed. She went into the kitchen, saw that the inside of her refrigerator was practically bare, and resolved to get a Galette for breakfast on her way to the lab.

Before leaving, she recorded and sent a message to Bernard:

_"Hey Bernard, this is Serena. I already have a hunch as to who took your Pokemon, but I'm not going to say over this message. There's something else I need to take care of first, and then I'll drop by and tell you everything."_

* * *

><p>With Eevee scampering along by her side, Serena walked from North to South Boulevard while munching on her Galette and wondering what she was going to say to Augustine. Telling him about Bernard seemed like both a good and bad idea: other people needed to know that something was up with the police, but how would he react if she told him that she was the one who broke into the police station the previous night?<p>

After observing that there was barely anyone out and about this morning, something red caught her eye. She looked to the side, and what she saw made her stomach lurch. There were two people dressed in red suits in an alley, both wearing sunglasses, loading crates into the back of a van. One of them would glance out to the street on occasion, as if to make sure nobody was seeing them. A man and his son were about to pass by, and that suited person turned to his companion and said something Serena couldn't understand.

The two people in red hopped into the back of the van, closed the door behind themselves, and the van drove off into the alley. Serena reached down and scooped Eevee up in her arms (dropping the remains of her Galette on the ground in the process) and sprinted towards that alleyway, taking care to leap out of the way of an oncoming Gogoat. She wound through the alley, past knocked over trashcans and two Trainers having a quick match, listening to the best of her ability for the sounds of the van's engine. Once the sound of the van driving away was lost, she slowed to a stop and looked around, her heart racing and her breath labored.

It made no sense, she told herself. Any reason for Team Flare's existence ended three years ago, with the destruction of the weapon under Geosenge and Lysandre's death. They would be nothing without their fierce, charismatic, passionate leader. Yet Serena knew that regular delivery vans would not go through alleyways to their destination, and nobody else wore suits in that exact shade of red.

* * *

><p>The elevator that took her up to Augustine's office moved too quickly for Serena's taste. The whole ride up, she had held Eevee close to her chest for comfort, trying to focus on the feeling of the Pokemon's soft fur under her fingertips rather than the dread building up inside of her.<p>

When the doors to the elevator opened, she stepped out tentatively, took two steps, and stopped when she saw Augustine plucking a book out of a bookshelf. He looked up towards the elevator, and immediately set that same book back in its place.

"It's about time you got here," he said grimly as he crossed the distance between them.

"Good morning to you too," she replied.

Augustine extended his hand to scratch Eevee on the top of his head; Eevee purred in delight. "Won't take long for this little guy to evolve," he commented as his mouth curled into a little smile. His eyes darted up to meet Serena's gaze, and that smile quickly faded.

"Serena, now that we're in a more private setting, do you mind telling me what's going on?" asked Augustine, gesturing for her to follow him around the partition to his desk. Once there, he leaned back against it and folded his arms across his chest.

"Uh . . . well . . . ." Serena bent down and released Eevee from her hold. Before she could invent some academic woes or a random crush on Calem, she took one look into his eyes and saw the concern and irritation there.

"It's the police," she spilled. "They usually don't use their Houndour to attack people, do they?"

"This is about the man who 'disturbed the peace' a couple of days ago, isn't it?" inquired Augustine.

Serena crossed her arms as well. "Bernard? Yeah. It was a cruel thing to do, you know? All he did was talk back to a police officer. It's not like he killed anyone. He shouldn't have been attacked, and his Pokemon shouldn't have been confiscated."

Augustine sighed. "_Je sais, mon amie. _Teleurac campaigned on a platform of fixing Kalos's problems . . . he should start with that police force. Unless he is in the business of eroding our civil rights –" His facial expression suddenly changed, as if he had a sudden realization about something unpleasant.

"The police station . . . that wasn't you, was it?" he asked her urgently.

"They had no right to do that to him," Serena said firmly.

Augustine groaned. "Why? I thought your days of recklessness were behind you! You're an adult – think about your education and your friends – and your mother!" His hands flew out, gripping her by the shoulders.

"I honestly think I'm the least of their problems right now," said Serena.

Augustine shook his head. "At least you had the common sense to not use a member of your main team to help you . . . but how can you say that?"

"Because on my way here, I saw Team Flare."

The color drained from his face. "Wha- what?"

"They were loading things onto a van and driving off into an alleyway," said Serena, trying to sound persuasive.

"Team Flare disbanded three years ago! Are you sure it was them?"

"I'm pretty sure, Augustine." Serena took a step back, pushing his hands off of her. "Of course, they got away from me before I saw where they went, but if I check those alleys again –"

"Let's go to dinner tonight." Augustine interrupted her. "No excuses, no conflicts, no surprise inspections are getting in our way. And then I think afterwards we should go dancing and stay up far too late, so we can fall asleep the moment our heads hit a pillow."

"That sounds like a date," said Serena, perplexed yet pleased. "Random timing, too."

"I'm serious! I-I . . . I've actually been thinking about asking you out for a while now," confessed Augustine.

Serena opened her mouth, intending to speak, but she felt as if all the words had been knocked out of her. If her mind wasn't preoccupied with Team Flare and the police's actions, she would be thrilled by what Augustine had just said, but for some reason the prospect of going on a proper date with him seemed so inconsequential.

She was saved by the sound of the elevator door opening. A few seconds later, a bald man dressed in a crisp black suit and red tie rounded the partition and located Augustine.

"Are you Professor Sycamore?" he asked.

"I am indeed," replied Augustine. Serena stepped out of the way.

"Just the man I was looking for. I am Alexandre Teleurac, Governor of Kalos – but I'm sure you knew that." Teleurac walked up to Augustine and extended his hand for a handshake.

"Pleasure to meet you, Governor," said Augustine politely.

Teleurac turned his head to make eye contact with Serena. "And who is this?" He slowly slid his hand from Augustine's grip and sauntered over to Serena, his mouth curving into a charming smile that showed off two rows of perfectly straight, white teeth.

"Serena Carlyle," she introduced herself, holding her own hand out with intentions to shake his hand. Instead, Teleurac gently took her hand in his.

"Mademoiselle Carlyle, the League Champion? Oh, _enchanté_," said Teleurac before he raised Serena's hand to his mouth and pressed his lips to it. "You are far lovelier in person than you are on television."

"Thank you," said Serena. In her peripheral vision, she saw Augustine roll his eyes.

"Are you adapting well to the new conservation policies?" he asked her.

"Yes I am, thanks for asking." Serena said. She took another breath to continue talking, but Teleurac beat her to it.

"_Très bien!_ Perhaps you would like to schedule a time to go to the film studio and shoot a PR video promoting the environmental initiatives? Your star power – and radiant beauty – would be a big boost towards getting more of the public on board!"

"Sure, I'd love to. Governor . . . I think the police department has abused its power in the case of a Mr. Bernard Lecroux. He may have disturbed the peace, but I don't think he deserved to be brutalized and have his Pokemon confiscated over it."

Teleurac nodded his head in agreement feverishly. "Agreed, _ma chérie_. I shall launch a formal inquiry. Now –"

"Also, I believe Team Flare is resuming its criminal activity." Serena continued.

His face went blank. "Is that so? Well, I'll launch a formal inquiry into that as well. Now, mademoiselle, I would like to have a private conversation with the Professor here, if you don't mind."

"Of course," said Serena agreeably. "I was just leaving anyway." She glanced over to Augustine before taking a step away.

"I'll send you a message about . . . erm . . . what I just suggested," said Augustine.

"Okay," Serena responded noncommittally. She whistled for Eevee to come to her, and then scooped the Pokemon back up into her arms. "Pleasure to meet you, Governor."

"The pleasure's all mine, Mademoiselle Carlyle." Teleurac gave her a crooked smile and watched her as she rounded the partition to the elevator.

Teleurac watched her leave, and then turned back to Augustine once the elevator door shut. "Charming girl," he said. "Professor, I hear you are an expert on Mega Evolution, correct?" He walked towards the shelf holding Augustine's collection of Mega Stones.

"I wouldn't call myself an expert, just a dedicated student of its secrets," said Augustine humbly.

"No matter what you call yourself, you must be very knowledgeable of the subject. Surely there are applications for such a Pokemon's unleashed power outside of battle?" Teleurac asked, using a finger to slowly stroke the top of the Aggronite.

"Honestly, Governor, Mega Evolution has only been a field of serious scientific study for five years now, even if we have been using it for millennia already. I am still working to characterize the phenomenon before I think of broader applications for it," explained Augustine.

"Hmm," muttered Teleurac, now running his thumb over the Aggronite. "Well, Professor . . . how would you like funds to research broader uses for Mega Evolution . . . and a position in the Department of Environmental Sustainability?"


	5. Chapter 5

**SIX**

_"He wants to WHAT?!"_

Shauna called Serena around five that afternoon. Before then, Serena was listening to the message Augustine had promised to leave her, and she was in the middle of reciting the details out loud when her friend's holographic image appeared from the Holo Caster.

"Dinner. And dancing. And staying up late, doing . . . I don't know what." Serena shrugged, although she had an idea of what could happen if she stayed up late with Augustine. "I'm supposed to meet him at Restaurant Le Wow at eight thirty, and wear something nice."

_"Wear that lacy blue dress – anyway, oh my gosh! You and him! Sure, he's our former mentor, and at least ten years older than you, but you've been hoping for this for how long now?"_

". . . I lost track of how long," admitted Serena, feeling her face get warm.

_"I always had a hunch you were his favorite. Don't tell Calem I said that."_

Serena laughed appreciatively. "So . . . how are things between you and Calem?"

_"They're good,"_ said Shauna casually. _"I mean, he's really bummed out about not being able to go to Hoenn. I don't see him during the day since I'm volunteering at the Pokemon Center in Cyllage, but last night we sat in his apartment after the party and watched some cheesy movies. We'll probably do the same tonight when I'm done here and he's done training for the day."_

"Hey, if it takes his mind off his troubles," said Serena.

Shauna turned her head and said something unintelligible to the person behind her. _"Well, looks like break time's over. Call me later and tell me all about your date with the Professor! . . . on second thought, don't. Bye!"_

Shauna's holographic image shrank back into the Holo Caster. Serena set the device down on her nightstand and crossed her bedroom to the closet to begin digging for the blue lacy dress Shauna had mentioned, all the while singing to herself.

"I'm going on a date, I'm going on a date, Team Flare is back in town, certainly up to no good, and I'm going on a date."

* * *

><p>The cab that was ferrying Serena arrived at Restaurant Le Wow at eight thirty-three. As the cab pulled up to the curb, Serena looked out the window and saw Augustine waiting outside the entrance to the restaurant, looking up and down the street. He was wearing the same waistcoat and slacks from the party the previous night, but with a light blue dress shirt and no tie. In his hand was a single pink rose.<p>

Serena paid the driver, took a deep breath, and opened the door to step out of the cab. The moment she poked her head out and stepped away, she heard Augustine call to her and raise his arm.

"Hi!" she called back while prancing up to him.

Augustine didn't respond; he smiled at her, but then scanned up and down her body before stopping on her face. The lacy blue dress, which clung to her curves just right to show her figure, was evidently doing the trick.

"Did someone give you a flower on your way here?" she asked him jokingly, gesturing towards the rose in his hand.

"Oh – no! No, this is for you," he said timidly, handing the flower over to her.

"Thank you. It's beautiful," she remarked, holding the rose by the stem in one hand and using her other hand to stroke its petals.

Augustine smiled as he placed an arm around her shoulders and guided her into the restaurant. As the two of them followed the hostess to their table, he saw one restaurant patron having a quick, small-scale battle with their waitress.

"Ah, I forgot this was a battling restaurant as well!" groaned Augustine. He pulled out a chair at the table and gestured for Serena to sit down.

"Don't worry. I've got this." Serena said confidently as she sat down.

Indeed, the battles were far too easy for Serena's taste. Since they were in a confined space, she used Meowstic and Ampharos in a Double Battle before the serving of each new course. Each of her opponents' Pokemon was taken out after a few hits from her own. In addition, it didn't take long for a small crowd to form around their table; people were taking this opportunity to watch the Champion battle in person.

The poisson course was soon served, and Serena turned back to the table to eat. She and Augustine caught one another's eyes, and they smiled nervously at each other.

"Some date this must be for you, just sitting there and watching me battle," she said apologetically.

Augustine shrugged. "The night is young. Opportunities for one-on-one time will present themselves. Besides, I love the way you work with Pokemon. You make it look so effortless."

Serena looked down at her plate and cut off a piece of her food. "Is that why I've been asked to help you handle Pokemon on and off over the last three years?"

"Like I said the other day, you are the best trainer I know. And it was an excuse to spend time with you."

"Well, Augustine, I'd be lying if I said I didn't look forward to those occasions when they arose," Serena confessed. She popped a small bite in her mouth, chewed, then swallowed. "Since they usually ended in you laid out on the floor, being jumped on by some rambunctious Squirtle or Fennekin." She smirked at the memory.

"And it took you two whole minutes to get them off me!" Augustine reminisced, laughing himself.

"Can you blame me? It was cute!"

Both Serena and Augustine laughed briefly before continuing to eat and make small talk about his research or her upcoming projects at school. When conversation died down, Serena looked at him tentatively as he looked down at his plate to scoop up another bite of food. She told herself that later, while they were dancing, she had to run her fingers through that wondrous thick hair of his.

Augustine took a bite, and then his gaze met hers. Both of them quickly diverted their eyes, and Serena smiled skittishly.

"Can I confess something, Serena?" he asked her.

"Yeah, go ahead," said Serena as she reestablished eye contact with him. She reached for her glass to take a drink, but then someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"Excuse me," said a young man who was holding a notepad and a pen, "I hate to interrupt you, but I would you please give me your autograph? My sister's a huge fan of yours."

"Um, sure," she said, trying to hide the annoyance in her voice. After she gave that young man an autograph, she turned back to Augustine and smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry," she said. "I keep forgetting I'm famous. Anyway, what were you saying?"

Augustine finished looking around the restaurant at the other patrons. "Uh . . . it can wait for later."

She shrugged and nodded in acceptance, but her curiosity was piqued. He could be ready to profess his undying love already, for all she knew.

A couple of minutes later, another person came up to her for an autograph, followed by a woman who wanted Serena to take a picture with her kids. All the while, she obliged her fans and gave Augustine the occasional apologetic look, while not showing how increasingly agitated she was becoming. Augustine took the interruptions in stride, quietly eating his food and offering a supportive smile whenever Serena turned to him.

Finally, a young man who appeared to be a few years older than her approached the table. His hair was shaped into spikes using far too much product and he reeked of cheap cologne.

"You know, I was Champion of Kanto once. Only for five minutes though, but that's only a minor detail. I like watching you battle, Serena. We should have a match sometime. But first . . . how'd you like to join me for coffee tomorrow?"

Serena scoffed. "Excuse me?" This was the final straw for her.

"We'd be quite the power couple. Name's Blue, by the way. Same color as those gorgeous eyes of yours."

"I don't care," snapped Serena. "See this gentleman here?" she pointed to Augustine. "I am on a date with him right now. An _actual date_, with fancy dinner and dancing and staying up late doing who-knows-what – Oh God, why did I just say that? He even gave me flowers, he's such a sweetheart. Anyway, since you don't even have the basic decency to leave alone two people trying to enjoy one another's company, I'm not going to even consider ever being the other half of your dream power couple. Now scram."

Once again, she had caught the attention of everyone at the restaurant. Serena felt all eyes on her, judging her and boring into her.

"Fine, sheesh. Smell ya later, I guess." Blue raised his hands in defeat, turned to walk away, but then looked back at Augustine. "You could do better. He doesn't even look like he has any Gym Badges."

"Go away!" Serena half-shouted. She turned back into the table and let her head drop into her shaking hands.

The waitress returned with the fromage course, a Skiddo in tow.

"Thank you for waiting. Here is the fromage course, a –"

"Excuse me," Serena said suddenly as she rose to her feet and stormed away from the table, grabbing her purse on her way out. She felt people staring at her, and their whispering amongst themselves made her skin crawl. Once out on the sidewalk of Hibernal Avenue, she heard footsteps bounding behind her, coming closer, until they halted.

"Serena," said Augustine softly, grabbing her shoulders and turning her to face him.

"I'm sorry," she blubbered. "I really am. You were probably really excited for this evening, and I blew it."

"No. That guy was way out of line. Don't worry about him."

"It's not just him! There were the people watching my battles with the owner and the garçon and the waitress, and everyone else who wanted my autograph and pictures – I can't even enjoy a meal in peace, Augustine. Are you sure you want to go out with me? Because you'll get caught up in all of this too."

Augustine slid his hands down from her shoulders, all the way down her arms, until he reached her hands, taking them in his own. "Yes. You're too wonderful and amazing to be constantly surrounded by people and attention yet feel so alone."

Serena smiled weakly. She raised herself up on the balls of her feet, leaned forward, and gave him a small kiss on the cheek.

"_Merci_," she said. He smiled in return. "Shall we go finish our dinner?"

"Actually, I was thinking we could move on to the next portion of our evening," said Augustine.

"Dancing?" Serena asked, excited and nervous at the prospect.

"Yes indeed," he replied. He let go of her hands and offered his arm to her.

"Where did you have in mind?" continued Serena as she linked her arm around his and began walking alongside him.

"My place," answered Augustine. "It's far more private, and my music selection is better than anything you'll find in a club or hall these days. I have a few dance moves I'm good at – and some other moves I can show you, but they're not for dancing." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Whoa now, this is only the first date!" Serena exclaimed through her giggles.

"I'm just teasing," said Augustine.

The two of them continued on down the street, past other people and Pokemon, the city feeling strangely dim without the usual glow of Prism Tower at night. Serena felt herself gravitating closer to Augustine as they walked, as if an invisible magnet was pulling her to him. While the evening hadn't gone exactly as she imagined it would, right now it was enough for her to be beside him, not saying much of anything, just enjoying each moment for what it was.

* * *

><p>Augustine's apartment fell between Vert Plaza and Vernal Avenue, in a two-story building that was more modern-looking than its surroundings.<p>

"Sorry, I forgot it's a mess," he said apologetically as they walked in. He reached over to the light switch next to the door and flicked it up, turning on the lights in the apartment. Serena was not at all surprised to see that this place was kept in the same state as his lab: messy, with dishes in the sink and various papers on every desk and table.

"I've seen worse," Serena shrugged. "When I lived in Kanto, I couldn't keep my room clean to save my life. Going on my Pokemon journey must have beaten orderliness into me."

"So if I had finished mine I would be able to keep my apartment clean?" Augustine feigned offense as he spoke. He guided her into the living area until they were both standing behind his sofa. Serena noticed a sleek-looking music player set up on a table along the wall.

"Perhaps," said Serena slyly, setting her bag down on a small table by the couch.

Augustine leaned over to his music player, turned it on, and pressed a few buttons until music started playing. The song that played had a soft but discernable beat, with guitar and piano in the background. After a few measures, a woman began singing in Kalosian.

He stepped back to Serena, took one of her hands, and placed his free hand on the small of her back. In turn, Serena put a hand on his shoulder. The two of them moved together, in time with the music, their bodies slowly gravitating closer to one another.

"Isn't this better than a noisy club?" Augustine asked softly.

"Much better," agreed Serena, "but at least at clubs they do the dishes."

He chortled.

Serena had been looking past his shoulder thus far, but now she diverted her gaze up to make eye contact with him. There was a look in his eyes, a mix of disbelief, wonder, and desire. She soon found herself matching that look, and scooting in some more so that only a small sliver of air separated their bodies.

"I meant to ask at dinner: what did Teleurac want?" inquired Serena.

"He offered me a job at the Department of Environmental Sustainability," said Augustine. "My job would be to develop applications for Mega Evolution outside of battling."

"Interesting," she commented.

"I think I'll take the job. The way the Department came down on us yesterday, this may be the only way to keep the lab fully operational. I'd be able to resume my current experiment but assign most of the work to Sina and Dexio while I work on whatever Teleurac assigns to me."

Serena nodded. "Are there any openings for research assistants?"

"There will be in the future," said Augustine with a chuckle.

"What's she singing about?" Serena asked about the song. After three years of living in Kalos, she had picked up the basics of the region's traditional language; however, she had a hard time understanding words when they were sung.

"The ocean, _la mer,_" he said poetically before he started singing along. _"__La mer__, les a bercés, le long des golfes clairs, et d'une chanson d'amour, la mer,"_ He twirled her on the spot, caught her, and then pulled her back into him.

_"A bercé mon coeur, pour la vie."_

The song ended, and was followed by a few more slow-paced songs that were either instrumental or featured Kalosian lyrics. Serena and Augustine would sway back and forth on the spot, arms around each other and very little space separating their faces.

"Your hair looks lovely tonight," he said.

"Thanks. So does yours," she responded, relieved that her painstaking hour of curling her hair had not gone unnoticed.

Augustine chuckled.

"What was it you were going to tell me at the restaurant before my fans attacked?" asked Serena.

"Ah, yes!" Augustine paused. "I was going to tell you . . . that I've actually been enamored with you for some time now. I mean – I've always regarded you differently than Calem and the others, since we easily became good friends after you became Champion. And, um, we, uh – _merde_, this is harder than I thought."

"And all the times I helped you with your research led to you feeling something more," added Serena honestly. That had been her experience, at least.

"Exactly. I remember when you were telling me about the battle you just had with that Gym Leader visiting from Sinnoh, and – just – the way your face lit up as you were talking, how animated and excited you were – it hit me that not only are you the best Pokemon Trainer I know, but you're also the most passionate and brave and – and – all around wonderful, and that my life is so much better with you in it."

She smiled at him, finding herself at a loss for words. He smiled back, his eyes full of joy, and she took that to mean that no words from her were needed at that moment. The sweet scent of his cologne indulged her senses, and his touch – the way his fingers languidly dragged themselves along her waist – brought her some indescribable pleasure. Eventually, she would get around to raising herself up onto her toes and press her lips to his . . . .

She was jolted out of her trance by the beginning of the next song on his playlist, which started abruptly and kept a fast tempo. Thankfully, these lyrics were not exclusively Kalosian.

"I love this song! We danced to it all the time at university!" Augustine jumped back and began bopping around in time to the music. A loud giggle erupted from Serena's mouth as she watched him; any other man would look ridiculous, but Augustine's clumsy dance moves were adorable to her.

"Ever do the Scatterbug, Serena?" He held out an open hand, his other hand snapping fingers rhythmically.

"Yeah. Tierno taught us all how," she answered before taking his hand.

Truthfully, she had not had much practice doing the Scatterbug; she mostly kept her eyes on her feet, making sure she didn't step on his as they swiftly went from step to step. Augustine's skill at this dance became apparent as he effortlessly twirled her around, twirled himself around, and managed to keep their limbs from being entangled on several occasions. He put all of his energy into the dance, so when the song ended, he let his body fall onto the couch.

"Dance yourself to death?" Serena asked him playfully. She looked at him from the back of the couch, her own breath heavy and her skin flush.

"I'm not as young as I used to be," said Augustine, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he breathed.

"That's okay. I'm still having fun." Serena beamed. "But if you're tired . . . I should probably go and let you rest."

"_Non, non, ma chérie,_" Augustine protested.

"It's almost ten," Serena told him after checking the clock mounted on the wall.

"The night is still . . . somewhat young. But if it's that late, I insist you stay the night."

Serena snorted. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the back of the couch. "Then we'll have to think of something else to do that is less physically taxing on you."

Augustine whimpered in disappointment.

"I know," said Serena sympathetically as she walked around and sat down on the couch next to his head. She gently grasped a lock of his hair between her fingers and lazily twisted it around. "Perhaps we should make sure we want to be in a serious relationship before we go down that path."

Augustine shifted his head slightly so he could make eye contact with her. "You mean . . . you're not sure yet?"

"I- well – um . . . ." Serena remembered what happened at dinner, then took her mind further back to when she was first crowned Champion and the media frenzy that followed. Back then, a story circulated about her and Calem supposedly being an item, until she got Alexa at Lumiose Press to shut it down. Both she and Calem had been scrutinized by the media – the nature of their supposed relationship, and how it could have arisen from their friendly rivalry. She could see the tabloids in her mind's eye again, only this time Calem was replaced with Augustine and the featured story was accusing the Professor of favoritism.

"My mom always told me to wait until after a few dates before I consider committing. But if we did, we'd have to keep it on the down low," she finally said. "We'd limit how often we're seen in public together. No popular cafés, no fancy restaurants, displays of affection kept behind closed doors."

"Ah, the struggles of having a famous girlfriend – I can handle all of that, Serena." He reached up and grabbed her hand that was stroking his hair, brought it to his mouth, and gently kissed her palm.

The two of them sat like that for a few minutes; Augustine rested her hand on his chest, and Serena used her free hand to continue playing with his hair, twirling his soft, silky locks around her fingers. She cursed her mother's advice to her about waiting to commit to a relationship; if she really wanted to, she could rewrite some of her interactions with him as "dates": café meetings like the one a few days ago, private meals where they talked about Pokemon and meaningless things, the time she unsuccessfully tried to teach him to rollerskate. Augustine was perhaps the one man she would consider breaking her mother's rule for.

"You want to watch some movies?" he suddenly asked her.

Serena looked around the living room; there was not a television in sight.

"The TV's in my bedroom – don't look at me like that, Serena, I'll keep a good six inches between us at all times. I just thought that you would enjoy the 'Pirates of the Ever Grande' film series."

"They're the ultimate in good stupid fun," commented Serena.

"You think so?" Augustine sat up as he spoke. "Sure, they have their campy, cheesy moments, but I thought they did a good job blending those moments with mindless action and extravagant special effects."

"I have a hard time believing that the captain really escaped that desert island while riding on the back of some Squirtle – with rope he wove from his own back hair."

Augustine shook his head. "He didn't actually do that, you know."

Serena scoffed. "Really? What evidence can you provide to show he made that story up?"

"Come watch the movies with me and I'll show you."


	6. Chapter 6

**SEVEN**

Serena woke up to the sound of Augustine's gentle, rhythmic breathing. She soon realized that her head was resting on his chest, and one of his arms was draped around her shoulders. Both of them were still wearing their clothes from the previous night, although she dare not think of what her hair looked like now, and neither of them had bothered to peel back the covers on his bed and tuck themselves in. The last thing she remembered happening, they were watching the third film in the series, and the pirate crew had discovered a giant Tentacruel - the same one that had caused problems in the second film - washed up dead on Lilycove Shore.

Sunlight was streaming through the curtains closed over the window in Augustine's bedroom. She raised her head slightly and saw the time and day on the clock on the nightstand. Eight-thirty AM, Monday.

"Dammit," she muttered as she hastily sat up. Her post-midterm break from school was over, and classes were scheduled to resume that day.

She swiveled her body around and hopped of his bed, finding her shoes lying haphazardly on the floor.

"Serena . . . ." Augustine said groggily as he sat up.

"It's Monday. I have class in thirty minutes," she explained.

"Oh? . . . ah, I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Once she finished putting her shoes on, Serena dashed to the bedroom door. "I had a great time. Really. I'll message you later."

* * *

><p>She arrived to her first class of the day, Physiology of Dragon-Type Pokemon, three minutes after nine. There was enough time to go back to her apartment, change clothes and shoes and tie her hair back, and fly straight to campus.<p>

Her usual seat next to Shauna was empty, and Shauna herself was seated already, looking around impatiently at the lecture hall, which was filling up as two dozen more students entered. Some students noticed Serena and would either give her an acknowledging smile or turn to whisper amongst themselves. The instructor had not arrived yet.

"Hey," Serena greeted Shauna as she sat down. Shauna smiled, and then her face changed to curiosity and scrutiny.

". . . You usually don't wear makeup to class," she observed.

"Oh – no, this isn't for class. Um, last night –"

"I don't want to know." Shauna interrupted her, trying to hide how uncomfortable the idea made her.

Serena rolled her eyes. "Nothing happened. Honestly."

At that moment, a harried-looking woman carrying a laptop and a stack of papers walked into the classroom and placed those items on a desk at the front.

"Hello class," she said to her students. "Today's lab section has been cancelled. Over the break, agents from the Department of Environmental Sustainability had the university relinquish many items we use in our labs – apparently they're too energy-costly. Our Evolution Simulator is too energy-costly? Really? Have they seen the setups down at Sycamore's lab?"

Serena looked down at her notebook, tapping her pencil on it. At the beginning of the semester, this professor had made it clear how she was no fan of Augustine or his work – the reason why had never been clarified.

"Anyway, we'll just have lecture today . . . and we'll just have lectures until we figure out what to do about lab, I guess. Now everyone get out your books and turn to Chapter 5."

* * *

><p>Since it was an overcast and blustery day, Serena and Shauna opted to spend their free time in the student union, in their usual table off to the side. Neither of them did much talking; while Shauna sent text messages to Calem on her Holo Caster, Serena reviewed her notes from the day's classes. On occasion, students would pass by, glance at Serena, and started to whisper amongst themselves.<p>

Shauna eventually put down her Holo Caster. "So, um . . . how'd your date go last night?"

"Oh! Uh, it went okay. We just went to dinner and then stayed up late watching movies. Nothing extraordinary." Serena replied as she suppressed a yawn.

"Nothing extraordinary? Calem just told me that he saw a news item about you yelling at a guy in Restaurant Le Wow," Shauna commented knowingly.

Serena huffed. Of course her little tirade would get media attention. Everything she did got media attention. Half of the people in her Physiology of Dragon-Type Pokemon class were in there because of her, and they all wanted her as study partners.

"That guy was really rude to us, I'll have you know." Serena's tone was defensive.

Shauna didn't respond. Her Holo Caster beeped, and she looked at its screen to read Calem's latest message.

"He's reading the story and telling me about it . . . apparently this journalist is really confused, because you're always so gracious to your fans. There's no good reason for you to snap, according to this guy."

"Please. That jerk at the restaurant was no fan," snapped Serena. "Perhaps I should have taken up his challenge for a battle right then. That would've made him shut up."

Serena's Holo Caster began beeping. Hoping that it wasn't someone who wanted to discuss her latest appearance in the tabloids, she took it out and pressed the "Answer" button. Augustine's holographic image appeared before her.

_"Serena! How are you? I hope classes are going well. I called because some new equipment was delivered to the lab today by the Department of Environmental Sustainability – _sacre bleu_ that's a mouthful, I'll have to shorten it to DES or something – anyway! These machines will be perfect for my new research projects, and I thought you'd find them fascinating too, so swing by the lab when you have a chance. _À bientôt!"

When the message finished playing, Serena checked the time: two-thirty. Her next, and final class for the day, was at three. She could be at the lab by five.

"That right there sounds like the most romantic thing I've _ever_ heard," said Shauna, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Please, Shauna. This is purely for science," Serena protested, although she didn't entirely believe what she had just said. Her face was getting warm again, and she fought to keep herself from smiling.

"Yeah. Sure it is."

* * *

><p>When Serena arrived at Augustine's office later that evening, she walked in to find him dancing by his desk to a pop song playing on the radio. On the opposite end of the room from his desk was a large boxy metal machine with a panel of buttons and blinking lights. His movements were as adorably awkward as they had been the previously night; and as he was facing his desk at that moment, Serena watched his backside as it moved back and forth slightly off-beat from the music.<p>

"WHAT DOES DELPHOX SAY?" Augustine rapidly turned around, holding a pen in his hand as if it were the stick Delphox utilized in battle. When he noticed Serena standing by the partition, he jumped back in surprise, and his face turned redder than his socks. Serena held her hand up to her mouth to stifle her laughter.

"Serena – hi!" said Augustine, still slightly embarrassed.

She walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "How's my favorite dancing professor today?"

"I'm sleepy, but feeling good. You?" he asked before bending down and giving her cheek a kiss.

"The same . . . Is that one of the machines you wanted to show me?" asked Serena, pointing to the one across the room.

"Yes – yes it is!" Augustine put an arm around her shoulder and guided her across the room, where he gestured at the machine with a grand, flourishing motion of his free arm. "The other two are an Evolution Simulator and an MRI machine – standard things, really, but they're from the Université de Kalos and much newer than what we have. I can use this one to measure energy output from any source, as well as store it." His face practically shone with enthusiasm, like he was a child showing off his new favorite toy.

"Where'd you get this one?" She looked up and down the machine, seeing that next to the panel of buttons were two long cables with electrodes on their ends.

"The Department gave it to me. It was developed by a private company for use by the government. Tomorrow I'll be meeting with Teleurac and some other scientists about an upcoming project investigating new sources of renewable energy."

"That's exciting!" Serena beamed.

"I know! Maybe I was wrong about Teleurac. He came off as an arrogant _connard_ during his campaign, but he might just actually care deeply for Kalos's well-being," said Augustine. The two of them maintained eye contact for a few seconds before Serena broke it by glancing back at the machine next to them.

"You got the other two from the university?" she asked him, thinking about how lab sections for her classes had been cancelled indefinitely.

"Yes, why?" Augustine looked puzzled.

"My Dragon-type Physiology class . . . we're not having any more labs this semester because the Department took some equipment. Said it was too 'inefficient.' And it's all sitting downstairs right now, isn't it?"

Augustine sighed. "I don't know if it came from your class specifically, Serena. I'm sorry if this is indirectly hindering your education."

"It's not, really," said Serena, "but we're writing term papers instead, on any topic we want related to Dragon-types. I'm going to talk to my instructor to see if she'll let me write about how and why my Charizard becomes a Dragon-type while it's Mega Evolved."

"Fascinating . . . You're welcome to use any of my resources for this paper – perhaps the notes and data we have on your Charizard would help? They're on that shelf right there."

"Yeah, I'll take you up on that . . . ." Serena walked over to the shelf Augustine indicated, and found the red notebook that contained all the data and observations that the two of them had gathered on her Charizard and Mega Evolution over the years. She then found herself distracted, thoughts drifting into skepticism about Teleurac and the Department of Environmental Sustainability.

"But Augustine, don't you think it's weird that you've gotten all this new lab equipment after being rated the second largest drain on energy usage in Lumiose City?" she asked as she stashed the notebook in her bag.

His demeanor fell as he contemplated her words. "Perhaps," he said, "but I'll be doing important work for the government."

"And that's a good enough excuse?" She took a step closer to him.

When he didn't respond, Serena sighed. "You don't think anything weird is going on, Augustine? A man is arrested and brutalized for disagreeing with the police, food and water is being rationed randomly, and then the government seizes lab equipment from a university for its own use in a lovely display of bureaucratic hypocrisy –"

"And two people in red suits load up a van and drive down an alleyway. So Team Flare _must_ be back."

"No – well, I'm not saying that for sure. But I think there's a chance," said Serena, growing flustered. Of course, now that she vocalized her thoughts, they sounded ridiculous to her. Perhaps Augustine was right this time.

"You're basing all of this on circumstantial evidence. Just because there are policy changes we disagree with doesn't mean that a criminal organization is behind it." Augustine said in an attempt to sound reasonable.

It was quiet for a moment.

"Serena . . . please don't stress over this. Focus on your studies. Spend time with your mother and your friends. Spend time with me." Augustine spoke soothingly while he brushed a lock of hair out of her face. "And if you turn out to be wrong, you'll feel so silly for worrying so much."

Serena shook her head. "I'd rather stress out and be wrong later than keep on living and not realize something's wrong until it's too late, like you did with Lysandre."

Augustine's face turned white, and Serena felt a pang of guilt after realizing what she had just said. She stepped back and watched as his face fell into a lost, sorrowful expression.

"I'm sorry – I didn't mean to say that–" she stammered, trying to think of ways to finish those sentences but coming up short. In a way, though, she _had_ meant to say that – it had always irked her how Augustine was in denial about Lysandre's involvement with Team Flare, right up to the fateful Holo Caster broadcast where he had announced his plans for eliminating the human race.

She couldn't find a way to salvage the situation. "I- I should go get started on that paper. I'll leave you to your work," she said hastily before turning around and dashing for the elevator, ignoring Augustine's fingertips brush against her elbow as he tried to grab hold.

During the walk home, she replayed that conversation in her head, thinking of things she could have said instead and the more pleasant outcomes that could have resulted. She alternated between crafting a proper apology in her head and resolving never to speak to him again to spare both of them from embarrassment. In the end, though, she spent the evening watching documentaries on television to block out any thoughts she had about Team Flare or what she had said to Augustine.


	7. Chapter 7

**SEVEN**

Serena woke up to the sound of Augustine's gentle, rhythmic breathing. She soon realized that her head was resting on his chest, and one of his arms was draped around her shoulders. Both of them were still wearing their clothes from the previous night, although she dare not think of what her hair looked like now, and neither of them had bothered to peel back the covers on his bed and tuck themselves in. The last thing she remembered happening, they were watching the third film in the series, and the pirate crew had discovered a giant Tentacruel - the same one that had caused problems in the second film - washed up dead on Lilycove Shore.

Sunlight was streaming through the curtains closed over the window in Augustine's bedroom. She raised her head slightly and saw the time and day on the clock on the nightstand. Eight-thirty AM, Monday.

"Dammit," she muttered as she hastily sat up. Her post-midterm break from school was over, and classes were scheduled to resume that day.

She swiveled her body around and hopped of his bed, finding her shoes lying haphazardly on the floor.

"Serena . . . ." Augustine said groggily as he sat up.

"It's Monday. I have class in thirty minutes," she explained.

"Oh? . . . ah, I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Once she finished putting her shoes on, Serena dashed to the bedroom door. "I had a great time. Really. I'll message you later."

* * *

><p>She arrived to her first class of the day, Physiology of Dragon-Type Pokemon, three minutes after nine. There was enough time to go back to her apartment, change clothes and shoes and tie her hair back, and fly straight to campus.<p>

Her usual seat next to Shauna was empty, and Shauna herself was seated already, looking around impatiently at the lecture hall, which was filling up as two dozen more students entered. Some students noticed Serena and would either give her an acknowledging smile or turn to whisper amongst themselves. The instructor had not arrived yet.

"Hey," Serena greeted Shauna as she sat down. Shauna smiled, and then her face changed to curiosity and scrutiny.

". . . You usually don't wear makeup to class," she observed.

"Oh – no, this isn't for class. Um, last night –"

"I don't want to know." Shauna interrupted her, trying to hide how uncomfortable the idea made her.

Serena rolled her eyes. "Nothing happened. Honestly."

At that moment, a harried-looking woman carrying a laptop and a stack of papers walked into the classroom and placed those items on a desk at the front.

"Hello class," she said to her students. "Today's lab section has been cancelled. Over the break, agents from the Department of Environmental Sustainability had the university relinquish many items we use in our labs – apparently they're too energy-costly. Our Evolution Simulator is too energy-costly? Really? Have they seen the setups down at Sycamore's lab?"

Serena looked down at her notebook, tapping her pencil on it. At the beginning of the semester, this professor had made it clear how she was no fan of Augustine or his work – the reason why had never been clarified.

"Anyway, we'll just have lecture today . . . and we'll just have lectures until we figure out what to do about lab, I guess. Now everyone get out your books and turn to Chapter 5."

* * *

><p>Since it was an overcast and blustery day, Serena and Shauna opted to spend their free time in the student union, in their usual table off to the side. Neither of them did much talking; while Shauna sent text messages to Calem on her Holo Caster, Serena reviewed her notes from the day's classes. On occasion, students would pass by, glance at Serena, and started to whisper amongst themselves.<p>

Shauna eventually put down her Holo Caster. "So, um . . . how'd your date go last night?"

"Oh! Uh, it went okay. We just went to dinner and then stayed up late watching movies. Nothing extraordinary." Serena replied as she suppressed a yawn.

"Nothing extraordinary? Calem just told me that he saw a news item about you yelling at a guy in Restaurant Le Wow," Shauna commented knowingly.

Serena huffed. Of course her little tirade would get media attention. Everything she did got media attention. Half of the people in her Physiology of Dragon-Type Pokemon class were in there because of her, and they all wanted her as study partners.

"That guy was really rude to us, I'll have you know." Serena's tone was defensive.

Shauna didn't respond. Her Holo Caster beeped, and she looked at its screen to read Calem's latest message.

"He's reading the story and telling me about it . . . apparently this journalist is really confused, because you're always so gracious to your fans. There's no good reason for you to snap, according to this guy."

"Please. That jerk at the restaurant was no fan," snapped Serena. "Perhaps I should have taken up his challenge for a battle right then. That would've made him shut up."

Serena's Holo Caster began beeping. Hoping that it wasn't someone who wanted to discuss her latest appearance in the tabloids, she took it out and pressed the "Answer" button. Augustine's holographic image appeared before her.

_"Serena! How are you? I hope classes are going well. I called because some new equipment was delivered to the lab today by the Department of Environmental Sustainability – _sacre bleu_ that's a mouthful, I'll have to shorten it to DES or something – anyway! These machines will be perfect for my new research projects, and I thought you'd find them fascinating too, so swing by the lab when you have a chance. _À bientôt!"

When the message finished playing, Serena checked the time: two-thirty. Her next, and final class for the day, was at three. She could be at the lab by five.

"That right there sounds like the most romantic thing I've _ever_ heard," said Shauna, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Please, Shauna. This is purely for science," Serena protested, although she didn't entirely believe what she had just said. Her face was getting warm again, and she fought to keep herself from smiling.

"Yeah. Sure it is."

* * *

><p>When Serena arrived at Augustine's office later that evening, she walked in to find him dancing by his desk to a pop song playing on the radio. On the opposite end of the room from his desk was a large boxy metal machine with a panel of buttons and blinking lights. His movements were as adorably awkward as they had been the previously night; and as he was facing his desk at that moment, Serena watched his backside as it moved back and forth slightly off-beat from the music.<p>

"WHAT DOES DELPHOX SAY?" Augustine rapidly turned around, holding a pen in his hand as if it were the stick Delphox utilized in battle. When he noticed Serena standing by the partition, he jumped back in surprise, and his face turned redder than his socks. Serena held her hand up to her mouth to stifle her laughter.

"Serena – hi!" said Augustine, still slightly embarrassed.

She walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "How's my favorite dancing professor today?"

"I'm sleepy, but feeling good. You?" he asked before bending down and giving her cheek a kiss.

"The same . . . Is that one of the machines you wanted to show me?" asked Serena, pointing to the one across the room.

"Yes – yes it is!" Augustine put an arm around her shoulder and guided her across the room, where he gestured at the machine with a grand, flourishing motion of his free arm. "The other two are an Evolution Simulator and an MRI machine – standard things, really, but they're from the Université de Kalos and much newer than what we have. I can use this one to measure energy output from any source, as well as store it." His face practically shone with enthusiasm, like he was a child showing off his new favorite toy.

"Where'd you get this one?" She looked up and down the machine, seeing that next to the panel of buttons were two long cables with electrodes on their ends.

"The Department gave it to me. It was developed by a private company for use by the government. Tomorrow I'll be meeting with Teleurac and some other scientists about an upcoming project investigating new sources of renewable energy."

"That's exciting!" Serena beamed.

"I know! Maybe I was wrong about Teleurac. He came off as an arrogant _connard_ during his campaign, but he might just actually care deeply for Kalos's well-being," said Augustine. The two of them maintained eye contact for a few seconds before Serena broke it by glancing back at the machine next to them.

"You got the other two from the university?" she asked him, thinking about how lab sections for her classes had been cancelled indefinitely.

"Yes, why?" Augustine looked puzzled.

"My Dragon-type Physiology class . . . we're not having any more labs this semester because the Department took some equipment. Said it was too 'inefficient.' And it's all sitting downstairs right now, isn't it?"

Augustine sighed. "I don't know if it came from your class specifically, Serena. I'm sorry if this is indirectly hindering your education."

"It's not, really," said Serena, "but we're writing term papers instead, on any topic we want related to Dragon-types. I'm going to talk to my instructor to see if she'll let me write about how and why my Charizard becomes a Dragon-type while it's Mega Evolved."

"Fascinating . . . You're welcome to use any of my resources for this paper – perhaps the notes and data we have on your Charizard would help? They're on that shelf right there."

"Yeah, I'll take you up on that . . . ." Serena walked over to the shelf Augustine indicated, and found the red notebook that contained all the data and observations that the two of them had gathered on her Charizard and Mega Evolution over the years. She then found herself distracted, thoughts drifting into skepticism about Teleurac and the Department of Environmental Sustainability.

"But Augustine, don't you think it's weird that you've gotten all this new lab equipment after being rated the second largest drain on energy usage in Lumiose City?" she asked as she stashed the notebook in her bag.

His demeanor fell as he contemplated her words. "Perhaps," he said, "but I'll be doing important work for the government."

"And that's a good enough excuse?" She took a step closer to him.

When he didn't respond, Serena sighed. "You don't think anything weird is going on, Augustine? A man is arrested and brutalized for disagreeing with the police, food and water is being rationed randomly, and then the government seizes lab equipment from a university for its own use in a lovely display of bureaucratic hypocrisy –"

"And two people in red suits load up a van and drive down an alleyway. So Team Flare _must_ be back."

"No – well, I'm not saying that for sure. But I think there's a chance," said Serena, growing flustered. Of course, now that she vocalized her thoughts, they sounded ridiculous to her. Perhaps Augustine was right this time.

"You're basing all of this on circumstantial evidence. Just because there are policy changes we disagree with doesn't mean that a criminal organization is behind it." Augustine said in an attempt to sound reasonable.

It was quiet for a moment.

"Serena . . . please don't stress over this. Focus on your studies. Spend time with your mother and your friends. Spend time with me." Augustine spoke soothingly while he brushed a lock of hair out of her face. "And if you turn out to be wrong, you'll feel so silly for worrying so much."

Serena shook her head. "I'd rather stress out and be wrong later than keep on living and not realize something's wrong until it's too late, like you did with Lysandre."

Augustine's face turned white, and Serena felt a pang of guilt after realizing what she had just said. She stepped back and watched as his face fell into a lost, sorrowful expression.

"I'm sorry – I didn't mean to say that–" she stammered, trying to think of ways to finish those sentences but coming up short. In a way, though, she _had_ meant to say that – it had always irked her how Augustine was in denial about Lysandre's involvement with Team Flare, right up to the fateful Holo Caster broadcast where he had announced his plans for eliminating the human race.

She couldn't find a way to salvage the situation. "I- I should go get started on that paper. I'll leave you to your work," she said hastily before turning around and dashing for the elevator, ignoring Augustine's fingertips brush against her elbow as he tried to grab hold.

During the walk home, she replayed that conversation in her head, thinking of things she could have said instead and the more pleasant outcomes that could have resulted. She alternated between crafting a proper apology in her head and resolving never to speak to him again to spare both of them from embarrassment. In the end, though, she spent the evening watching documentaries on television to block out any thoughts she had about Team Flare or what she had said to Augustine.


	8. Chapter 8

**EIGHT**

Four days. That was how long Serena managed to avoid seeing or talking to Augustine. She distracted herself by going to class, hanging out with Shauna when Calem was busy training ("He trains almost all the time," Shauna had lamented) working on her schoolwork, talking to her mother (who couldn't believe that she had to find out about the date with Augustine through a celebrity blogger) and doing her best to stay out of the limelight since her outburst at Restaurant Le Wow was still a hot item of gossip. People were still either talking about that or the new curfew set by Teleurac: every evening at seven o'clock, it was lights out in office buildings, certain retailers and entertainment venues, and minimal use in restaurants and homes. When this new policy was announced over the Holo Caster, Malva was acting like the world would end that instant unless everyone did their part and used less electricity to power their lives.

Of course, whenever Serena flew back to the city after her evening class on Wednesday, she saw that the lights were still on in Sycamore Laboratories, even though it was seven fifteen. Instead of wondering why Augustine was kept late at work these days, she felt a pang of guilt every time she thought about him. In her mind, what she had said about his attitude towards Lysandre may have been true, but she was extremely insensitive to bring it up. She knew that Lysandre was still a tender topic for Augustine; the two men were childhood friends and were like brothers, united by a passion for Pokemon and science, as well as a tragic accident that killed both their parents. Context didn't matter; any mention of Lysandre in front of Augustine was like cutting open a wound that had just finished healing.

After four days, she still hadn't figured out a good way to apologize, but she was starting to miss him.

* * *

><p>Serena checked the time display on her laptop. Six fifty-five PM. From her spot at the kitchen table, she looked around the kitchen as well as the living room, and decided that it wasn't a big deal if the TV, her source of background noise, stayed on past seven o'clock tonight. She was on a roll with organizing her paper and picking out key points to discuss, and was perhaps ready to start the actual writing process.<p>

Ten minutes later, there was a knock on her front door. She quickly saved her document and stood up to make her way to the door. Perhaps the powers that be _were_ really strict about the whole electricity conservation thing, she thought.

When she opened the door, though, she found Augustine standing there, looking down at his feet. He was holding a single pink rose in his hand.

"You, uh, hadn't been answering your Holo Caster," he said, still keeping his eyes on his feet but glancing up to her.

"I've been keeping it turned off. You know, to save power and all," said Serena; the truth was that she purposely did not answer his calls.

A few seconds of awkward silence passed.

"Um . . . wanna come in?" Serena asked him as she stepped out of the doorway. Augustine nodded and stepped inside, and she closed the door behind him. No more excuses, she told herself.

"Look, Augustine, what I said the other day – I was out of line. I shouldn't have said that, and I'm really sorry. I just - I felt so ashamed over it, because all these years later I know it still hurts for you to think about him, and . . . uh . . . you probably wanted some space from me or something."

He smiled faintly. "Did you really think that one uncouth comment would ruin three years of good friendship? Or how I feel about you?" he asked, holding the rose out to her. She took it and held it close to her chest, shaking her head as she did.

"Serena, _chérie_, I know you're stressed out right now. I know I was during my second year of university – then again, I didn't have paparazzi following me everywhere and publishing stories about my supposed nervous breakdown every other day."

"I yell at one guy and everyone thinks I'm losing it," said Serena bitterly. She would have to talk to Alexa about it the following day.

Augustine shrugged. "What you said did hurt, I won't deny that . . . but I don't want you to feel like you've done irreparable damage to our relationship, because you haven't."

Serena relaxed, letting go of some of the tension that had been building up inside her when she saw the sincerity in his face. He raised his arms slightly, nodding his head in a beckon for her to come closer. She closed the distance between them and felt his arms wrap around her as she threw her own around his back, resting her head against his chest, taking in the warmth and closeness of him, as well as the familiar scent of that cologne.

Augustine pulled away, but kept his hands on her shoulders. "Have you eaten dinner yet?"

"No," said Serena.

"Come with me back to my place. I'll cook for you," he offered.

"I'm working on my paper right now," Serena told him.

"Bring that too! Perhaps I can help with it."

After flashing him a smile, Serena dashed back into the kitchen. She filled a glass with some water and put the rose in it, setting it as a centerpiece on her kitchen table. She then powered down her laptop and stashed it, the power cable, and her notes into her computer bag. After throwing the bag's strap over her shoulder, she found her black riding boots on the floor under her coffee table and hastily put them on. Finally, she grabbed her Pokeball belt off the table and fastened it on top of her hips.

Meanwhile, Augustine was paying attention to the television.

"Psyduck Dynasty? Really?" he asked her, almost mockingly.

"They're incompetent, but they make good background noise," said Serena. She grabbed her jacket off the back of the couch, throwing it on over her blue and white high-waisted dress so she wouldn't be too chilly in the autumn evening air. The remote control was lying nearby on the couch; she picked it up and turned off the TV.

After turning off all the lights in her apartment, she and Augustine left and began the walk to his apartment. If the closing of Prism Tower had made Lumiose feel like a darker place, then it felt downright eerie now that many homes and businesses were either dimly lit or completely dark. In addition, only every other street lamp was turned on. Other people who were out used flashlights or the lights from their Holo Casters to illuminate their path. One person had his Minun walk in front of him; the Pokemon was using Flash to create a small bubble of light around itself and its Trainer.

The dark didn't bother Serena, although she was almost startled when she felt Augustine grab her hand. She wriggled her fingers around, helping him interlace his with her own. She then looked up to him, to find that he was looking back at her; the two of them shared small yet warm smiles.

"So . . . how were the last few days for you?" asked Serena, hoping he wouldn't resent her too much for ignoring him that long.

"Tedious, mainly. Mable is the one who runs the Department, and every meeting I had with her was about teaching me to use the energy extractor. At first, watching it electrocute an apple and turn it into a charred and mangled mass was a terrifying kind of fascinating, but after the fortieth apple I practiced with I was hoping to play with some aubergines or grapefruits."

Serena chortled. "So you'll be pulling energy out of fruit?"

"No, that was just to get used to how it works. Teleurac is always in meetings with another committee to brainstorm potential sources for renewable energy." Augustine said. "I just wonder what any of it has to do with Mega Evolution."

"They're telling us to eat less food to ease the burden on farmers and the land, but they're using up fruit like it's nothing?" Serena muttered. More lovely bureaucratic hypocrisy, she thought bitterly.

"I know," said Augustine softly.

A combination of flashlights and bright red sticking out in the night made its way into her peripheral vision. She stopped suddenly, yanking Augustine back to her side as he tried to walk on.

"Look!" she said quietly, pointing to the alley. Augustine turned his head to the alley and saw three Team Flare grunts working together to hoist a large wooden crate into the back of a van.

"_Mon Dieu_," he gasped. His mouth remained open, lower lip quivering, as he silently watched them. He shook his head, looking over them for something to indicate that they were something else entirely, but there was no denying anything when he saw their belt buckles in the shape of the curved red F.

The grunts finished loading the crate and hopped in the back of the van, shutting the door behind themselves.

"I can't believe it," said Augustine in disbelief. His mouth was hanging open, and his eyes darted between the van and Serena.

Once the van began driving away, Serena let go of his hand and sped off in pursuit. There was no way she would lose them this time.


	9. Chapter 9

**NINE**

Serena followed the van as it wound through alleys and back roads, through Rouge Plaza, and kept a safe distance once it stopped in a dead end behind the Looker Bureau. She peered around the corner of a building as a Team Flare grunt got out of the back of the van and opened up a manhole.

The familiar pounding of Augustine's feet on the pavement came soon after. He stopped by her side and bent over, placing a hand on her shoulder and clutching on for dear life as he labored for breath.

"What . . . are you . . . thinking?" he asked her, trying to sound disapproving although there was little support to his voice.

"I'm going to see what they're up to," answered Serena. She held a finger up to her mouth, telling him to shush, and then turned her attention back to the Team Flare grunts. The grunts were struggling under the weight of the large crate they had previously loaded.

"How are we going to get this down that hole?" one of the grunts asked.

"Have your Meditite levitate it or something. I don't know."

"Urgh, you are the least helpful person I've had the misfortune of working with."

Serena counted the grunts again. Three of them, and then the driver of the van, who had not revealed themselves yet.

"Are you going to battle all of them?" whispered Augustine.

"No . . . I have a better idea." Serena began fumbling on her belt until she found Haunter's Pokeball. She released Haunter, then gestured for him to come closer to her.

"Use Hypnosis on everyone there," she said, giving a small point towards the van. Haunter obeyed, and floated that way, making his body transparent as he did. In a matter of seconds, all of the Team Flare grunts were lying on the ground asleep. The van driver's head flopped over and hit the window with a _thud._

"You do know that using Pokemon to attack humans is against the law, right?" Augustine said.

"Yeah yeah, just a minor detail. Good work, Haunter," said Serena as she recalled the Pokemon. "Now to see what's in that crate."

Serena walked over and dropped onto her knees next to the crate, and began feeling around the edges of it until she found a space big enough for her fingers to wiggle through before pushing up on the lid. The crate opened slowly, resisting Serena as its lid was forced upward, until nails became separated from wood and the lid was discarded.

"Oh – oh no. No no no no no." Serena's hand rose up to her mouth when she saw two fainted Skiddo inside the crate.

"Are those the two that always sleep outside the train station?" asked Augustine, looking into the crate and gasping in shock.

"I-I think so." Serena threw her hand into her bag and dug around until she found two Max Revives. She used them both on the Skiddo and watched them slowly stand up inside the crate. One Skiddo soon hopped out of the crate, followed by the other. Both of them looked around, confused by their surroundings.

"Go. Get out of here!" Serena pointed towards the Looker Bureau. "Your Trainer could be back any minute now!" As if she had said the magic words, the Skiddo bounded away from the alley, and she watched until they were out of her sight.

Augustine moved over to the van and looked in the back of it. It was empty. "So those were the only Pokemon they brought," he noted.

"But there's no telling how many are down there," said Serena, indicating the open hole in the ground. "I'm going to investigate. You can come with me or go home and wait, I don't really care." She moved over to the hole and saw the top of a ladder attached to it. She turned around and crawled backwards, dipping her feet into the hole until they found the cold metal rung of the ladder. She promptly began her descent.

"This is one hell of a date," Augustine muttered as he followed her.

* * *

><p>When Serena disembarked from the ladder, she found herself in a steely white hallway, with bright white lights illuminating the area, and smelling faintly of sewage. The hallway stretched ahead of her for several dozen yards, before turning a soft left. There were no doorways in the initial stretch.<p>

"Right under our noses . . . how long did they spend building this out of a sewer?" Augustine wondered as he looked around.

"Who knows?" Serena walked forward slowly, surveying the area, with Augustine by her side. "I mean, Café Lysandre was closed shortly after I helped Looker catch Xerosic, and the labs were shut down, so . . . ." She pulled Greninja's Pokeball off her belt, clutching it tightly in her hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Augustine fumble at his belt before choosing a Pokeball as well.

"I wonder what this place is?" he asked, noting the lack of anything happening in this hallway.

Serena was scanning the floor. "Who knows . . . I'm half expecting to accidentally step on a warp platform or one of those tiles that sends you zooming across the room."

The two of them rounded the corner, finding themselves in another stretch of hallway; one door was found on the right side of the hall. Serena went up to the door and turned the knob. It swung open, revealing the inside to her.

"Augustine," she gestured for him to come closer to her, not tearing her eyes away from what she was seeing as she walked in cautiously.

The inside of this room was illuminated with a cold white light. Walls were lined with cages of Pokemon that were asleep, huddled in the corner of their cages, or striking at the glass that kept them imprisoned. A steel examination table stood in the middle of the room, next to a boxy machine that was very similar to the one Augustine had recently acquired. The electrode connected to this machine was embedded between the closed eyes of a Solrock lying motionless on the examination table. Rolling tables in the corner of the room held forms covered by white sheets. Serena walked over to one of the tables and lifted up a sheet to see what was under it, and her stomach dropped when she saw what looked like the blackened and bloody remains of a Bunnelby. The Pokemon had two holes in its forehead, each the approximate diameter and circumference of the electrodes currently inside the Solrock.

She threw the sheet back over the Bunnelby and jumped back, her hand flying up to her mouth to suppress a gasp.

"What is it?" asked Augustine as he approached the table. He lifted the sheet, saw the Bunnelby, and then tossed the sheet back before turning to Serena. His face was twisted into a disturbed grimace.

"Those _monsters,_" she hissed, unable to shake the image from her head. She felt like she could vomit, if her stomach had anything in it worth ejecting.

Augustine glance past her towards the Solrock on the table, then over to the other caged Pokemon. "That – that's the same device there that I have at my lab," he realized, horrified.

"We have to tell the Governor about this," said Serena firmly.

"You won't get the chance." A woman's voice came from the doorway. Serena and Augustine turned and saw Malva, who was standing with her hands on her hips and an annoyed expression on her face.

"What's this? I leave for five minutes to use the restroom, and I have intruders!"

"Malva!" Serena exclaimed. "What are you doing to these Pokemon?"

Malva sauntered into the room, lazily tossing her pink hair behind her shoulders. "This, you runt, is a laboratory. We're trying to tap into a Pokemon's energy and capture it for usage."

"Why?" Serena demanded. She noticed a Pokeball clutched in one of Malva's hands.

"It's a potential source of renewable energy for Kalos! That is, once we figure out how to keep the Pokemon from dying."

Serena took a step towards Malva. "This is barbaric."

"Ugh, you and your self-righteousness, I forgot how that annoyed me so," groaned Malva. "What's wrong, Serena? You can't handle that Team Flare is trying to do something good for the world that doesn't involve genocide?"

While the two women exchanged words and glares, Augustine moved away from the computer to the Solrock lying unconscious on the steel table, and began removing the wires from its body.

"Not so fast, Professor!" Malva snarled. She threw her Pokeball, releasing her Pyroar. "Pyroar, stop him."

Pyroar roared and reared back, preparing to pounce on Augustine. Serena flung forward the Pokeball in her hand, releasing Greninja.

"Greninja, use Water Shuriken!" she commanded.

While the attack missed and flew into the wall, it led Pyroar to hop off to the side. Augustine finished disconnecting Solrock and looked to Serena. While Malva directed her Pyroar to attack Greninja, Serena quickly dug through her bag, only to find that she was out of Revives. "Sorry, I used my last two on those Skiddo. Greninja, use Hydro Pump!"

Greninja's next attack took Pyroar out. Talonflame followed, landing a blow using Brave Bird before being fainted by a well-placed Hydro Pump. Torkoal was not even given an opportunity to attack, having fallen after one hit. Chandelure managed to use Confuse Ray and Shadow Ball in the midst of being struck by multiple Water Shurikens.

"You never cease to infuriate me," Malva hissed as she called back her fainted Chandelure. "But this isn't over. Soon all of Team Flare will know you're here, and there will be no escape." She backed out of the room before running down the hallway.

"We need to get out of here," Augustine said urgently. He started for the door, but stopped when he noticed Serena had run toward the caged Pokemon. She started by pressing random four-digit sequences on the panels; when that didn't work, she kicked the glass doors of the cages with all her might, only to find that they did not budge for her.

"Serena, there's no time," said Augustine as she released Lucario.

"We can't just leave them!" she protested. Shouts could be heard from down the hall.

"They're on their way. Come on!"

Serena bit her lip, and gazed at each of the caged Pokemon apologetically. "Perhaps some other time," she murmured, "If you live that long." She recalled Lucario and dashed for the door and out into the hall, Augustine running next to her.

"Where would you have kept those Pokemon anyway? They won't fit in your apartment, and there's no room for them at the lab either," said Augustine as they ran.

"I'd have figured something out," Serena told him. "I always do." She looked over her shoulder to see three Team Flare grunts in their wake.

The ladder taking them back up to the surface was only feet away. As Augustine climbed up, Serena released Greninja, whom she directed to let loose another Hydro Pump. The attack sent the grunts flying backwards, leaving them soaking wet and lying in a small flood.

Serena recalled Greninja and scrambled back up the ladder. Once back on the surface, she pushed the manhole cover back into place, and Augustine brought out his Garchomp to stand on top of the manhole cover.

"I'm going to alert the authorities," he announced, pulling out his Holo Caster.

"Should I go grab Emma? She's right around the corner," offered Serena, pointing in the general direction of the Looker Bureau.

Sirens could be heard not too far away from them.

"That's odd . . . I haven't even called them yet," observed Augustine as he noticed the sirens.

"There's no guarantee that they're coming here," said Serena.

The sirens were coming closer to their location. Soon after, a procession of five police officers on motorbikes, as well as a sleek black car behind them, arrived in the alleyway.

"_She_ called the police?" Augustine said in disbelief.

At that moment, something from below ground hit the manhole cover, causing it to shake with such force that Garchomp inadvertently stepped off of it. The cover popped into the air, landing next to the opening of the manhole. A matter of seconds later, a Weavile had ambled its way up the ladder. Weavile located Garchomp, then shot an Ice Beam at the Dragon-type. Garchomp was hit square in the chest; once the attack had ceased, he fell forward, an icy patch still lingering on his body.

"_Merde_," Augustine cursed as he returned his fainted Pokemon to his Pokeball.

Serena grabbed Ampharos's ball, but the arrival of the police motorbikes distracted her. All of the drivers stopped their vehicles right at the entrance of the alleyway. The leader of them stepped off their bike and removed their helmet, revealing a head of bright red hair.

"Ah, Miss Carlyle. We meet again," Police Chief Renshaw spoke in her icy voice.

Serena pursed her lips. "Your timing's impeccable, Chief . . . but you're not here for me, are you?" she asked.

"Oh, you are a clever one!" said Renshaw in a patronizing tone.

The front passenger side door of the car opened, and Serena saw a sleek black dress shoe step out. A bald man, dressed in a red-and-black suit, stepped forward.

"She's not the only one," said Alexandre Teleurac as he approached her.

Serena's mouth dropped open slightly.

"Ah, Professor Sycamore! I expected her to be meddling in our business, but not you!" Teleurac turned his attention to Augustine, whose eyes were wide and whose mouth also hung open in dumbfounded speechlessness.

"I kind of dragged him along with me," Serena said, seeing the look on Augustine's face. She could hazard a guess at what was happening in his mind right now as he found out who it was he was truly working for over the last week.

"Is that so?" asked Teleurac, his gaze shifting to her. "You know what they say . . . curiosity killed the Delcatty. When you told me you had suspicions of Team Flare returning, I knew our operations would have to become more covert. If it weren't for those fools," he nodded his head to the grunts still sleeping near the van, "perhaps we would have never been found out. But now you know . . . so what am I to do?"

Serena reached at her belt to grab a Pokeball.

"Now now, Serena, don't be so hasty. Perhaps we can talk, and I will tell you everything we are planning to do. You should come along as well, Professor, because this applies to you." Teleurac gestured to his car and walked back to it. Serena and Augustine looked at one another, communicating their uncertainty nonverbally, before stepping forward to follow him.


	10. Chapter 10

**TEN**

Serena expected Teleurac's office to have a red-and-black theme to its décor, similar to what Café Lysandre had. Instead, the walls were off-white and adorned with portraits of notable figures in Kalos's history, including a print of "The King, the Pokemon, and the Key" that hung next to a portrait of a young girl with a Vulpix. The Governor's desk was kept orderly, and there was a liquor cabinet nearby along the wall.

Teleurac stood behind his chair as Serena and Augustine stood across the desk from him. Once the three of them were in position, the Flare grunts that had followed them up closed the door with themselves on the outside.

"Would either of you like something to drink?" he offered, gesturing to the liquor cabinet.

"No thanks," Serena rejected his offer, her voice flat.

"Professor?"

Augustine shook his head.

"Well then," continued Teleurac as he sat down in his chair. "Serena, I'm pleased that you have chosen to act as a mature adult right now, rather than the rash teenager you were three years ago. Sometimes it pays to stop, talk it out, and think before rushing into action.

"First off, I want you to know that Team Flare stands for something entirely different today than it did three years ago. Sure, the world is still plagued with greedy, destructive human beings that are slowly destroying the world. Lysandre was right about that. But unlike Lysandre, I believe people can change. Don't get me wrong, I admire the man greatly. To be so devoted to an idea that you would die for it . . . that's the kind of person we should all aspire to be."

Serena noticed Augustine tense up at the mention of Lysandre. She wanted to reach out and hold his hand in an attempt to comfort him, but she didn't out of fear for how Teleurac would react to that sign of affection.

"So when can we expect that weapon to pop out of the ground again?" inquired Serena, still not believing what he had to say.

"_Ma chérie_, I would not stoop to that. It is my job to protect Kalos, not destroy it," replied Teleurac, swiveling slightly in his chair.

"I believe in making the world a better place for both people and Pokemon, but firing off a weapon to kill millions of innocents is hardly a sustainable way to go about it. There is a way to ensure plentiful resources for future generations, and we are dedicated to finding it. See, these rations on food, water, and electricity aren't because I enjoy watching people suffer as they go without less. We are rapidly running out of fresh water. Food supply can't keep up with the demand placed upon it by a growing population. Generating electricity for all of Kalos at the Power Plant costs a great deal of natural resources. They'll run out soon, and until we find a more renewable source of energy, we have to make what we have last longer."

"From what I saw in your facility, Governor, it doesn't look like Pokemon are a very good source of renewable energy," Augustine commented disdainfully.

"That's because they keep dying during tests. Professor, starting tomorrow, I want you to help Mable find a way to maximize energy output from Pokemon without killing them." Teleurac said to Augustine.

"No," said Augustine defiantly. "What I saw was inhumane and I refuse to take part in it."

"Is that so?" asked Teleurac coolly. "Need I remind you that you work for me?"

"Then I quit."

Teleurac laughed softly and menacingly. "Go right ahead, Professor, but keep in mind that the only reason your lab is still open is by my good grace. I can justify keeping your energy-costly facilities open to the public if there's government-funded research happening there. You refuse to work for me, and I'll have it shut down. Everyone who works under you will be without a job. Think of Sophie, who has two children to feed. Think of how poorly you would be repaying Sina and Dexio, who dedicate their whole lives to helping you with your research. And what about all the young people who set out to become Pokemon Trainers? Where would they meet their first Pokemon, if not at your lab? Ah, that's right – you have Pokemon in your lab, don't you? They'd have to live on the street with the Skiddo and be vulnerable to those gangs that –"

"Oh, shut up!" Serena snapped. She could see how Augustine's hands were shaking at his sides.

"I'm sorry?" Teleurac eyed her.

"You heard me." Serena's voice shook with indignation, and she heard Augustine hiss her name in disapproval, as if he was telling her to stop before she did something she would regret later. She leaned forward towards Teleurac, placing her hands on his desk and glaring at him.

Teleurac sighed. "Oh Serena," he said, sounding disappointed, "Why are you so intent on hating me? Are you still so blinded by hatred of the very idea of Team Flare that you'll get in the way of progress?"

"Progress? _Progress?_ Treating Bernard Lecroux the way he was treated is not progress – that's something out of the Dark Ages! And so is experimenting on Pokemon!"

"A wise man once said that the ends justify the means," replied Teleurac.

Serena wanted to tell him that this so-called 'wise man' was full of Tauros excrement, but she didn't once she felt Augustine's eyes on her. Instead, she clenched her teeth and continued to look at Teleurac contemptuously.

"I hope one day you'll see that I'm not the monster you think I am," said Teleurac civilly. "I don't like that Pokemon are suffering and dying any more than you, but at the same time some sacrifices have to be made."

Silence fell. Serena stepped away from the desk, backing up to be at Augustine's side. Augustine had his head bowed, and his hands were stuffed into his pockets. She saw how his brow was furrowed as he stared at his shoes in frustrated and disillusioned thought.

"I am glad we could have this discussion, even though you still seem unconvinced, Serena." Teleurac finally said. He stood up and walked to the door, opening it once he got there.

"Come along, you two."

Serena and Augustine followed Teleurac back out to his car, getting in the back seat while the Governor rode shotgun.

Inside the car, there was a faint smell of cigarette smoke mixed with musky cologne that clung to the smooth seats of the car. The air around everyone was tense during the car ride, and nobody spoke. Serena's eyes darted between Teleurac (who was speaking to his driver in low whispers) and Augustine, who was alternating his gaze between her and the window. She kept wondering what was going to happen next, and if he was taking her back to her apartment, to prison, or somewhere else entirely.

"So much for dinner," Augustine muttered, leaning his head back against the seat and sighing after he spoke.

"I'm free tomorrow," Serena answered in a hushed tone. She saw in the rearview mirror how Teleurac's eyes flicked up to look at her when she spoke.

"Maybe," she added hastily. It all depended on what was going to happen next; the uncertainty of it all made her stomach twist into knots.

The car soon pulled up alongside the curb near Serena's apartment building. The driver put the car in park, and Teleurac stepped out. He walked around to the back and opened the door next to Serena.

"Here we are, Serena. Say good night to Professor Sycamore."

Serena turned to Augustine and rose her hand up in a short, awkward wave. "Well, good night," she said uncertainly.

Augustine nodded, forcing out a small smile. "Good night to you too, Serena. Until next time."

Teleurac reached into the car and cupped Serena's elbow so he could gently pull her out into the road. He shut the door behind him and walked into the building, still maintaining his hold on her arm.

"What are you going to do to him?" Serena asked him quietly.

"Nothing," said Teleurac as he opened the door into the deserted lobby. "And I'm not going to do anything to you either . . . as long as you cooperate." He led her to the elevator and ushered her inside.

_"Cooperate?" _ she asked, dread and uneasiness rising up inside of her.

"Yes. It won't be hard," replied Teleurac as he pressed a button to send the elevator up to the fourth floor. "Be a good law-abiding citizen. Go about your daily life, and don't cause any trouble or spread any rumors. Kalos doesn't need to be launched into the same irrational paranoia about Team Flare that you're currently experiencing."

Serena continued to scowl at him.

"Why would you want to cause trouble? Why make your family and friends to worry about you? Why make poor, sweet, dear Augustine worry about you? Of course I know about you and him, Serena. It's in every tabloid. And I know he doesn't like the idea of experimenting on Pokemon the way I want him to, but he'll realize one day it's all for the greater good – unless, of course, you make unnecessary waves. There may just be a tragic accident at Sycamore Laboratories, with one fatality."

The elevator door opened with a _ding_. Serena paid no attention; instead, she swiftly slapped Teleurac across the face with all her might. He smirked, and turned his head back to face her. She saw the pink imprint on his cheek that was the same shape and size as her hand.

"Don't do that again," he hissed threateningly.

"Don't threaten people I care about." Serena snapped.

Teleurac grabbed her by the arm again and ushered her out of the elevator. "Which apartment is yours?"

Serena pointed down the hall, at the door on the very end. The two of them began walking that way.

"How about this," Teleurac leaned in closer to whisper in her ear, "You uphold your end, and I'll uphold mine. Do everything as I say, _exactly_, and nobody gets hurt. Do we have an agreement?"

His words sent chills down her spine. She stopped walking, leading him to halt as well, and she studied his face or a moment. Beyond the threatening demeanor, she couldn't tell how sincere he was being.

"We have an agreement," she finally said, feeling defeated.

"_Bien_," he said, his mouth curving into an insincere smile.

He finished walking her to the front door of her apartment. From there, she got out her key and began to unlock the front door.

"Have a good evening, Serena," said Teleurac before he turned to leave.

Once inside her apartment, Serena locked the door behind her, placed her computer bag on the couch, and went to take a shower to get the smell of sweat, sewage, and Teleurac's car off her body. She spent the rest of the night lying awake on her bed, distracted by replays of her conversations with Teleurac in her mind – the very thing she was trying to avoid.

He had to be hiding something, she reasoned. If Team Flare intended to be perfectly benign, why not go public and announce who they truly were? What else was in that underground facility, and why was it even underground?

She grabbed her Holo Caster and called Augustine. He did not answer.


	11. Chapter 11

**ELEVEN**

Aside from a trip to the Pokemon Center to swap out Haunter for Eevee, Serena spent much of the next day in her apartment. She watched TV, played with Eevee, and continued work on her paper. While out and about previously, she had noticed that there were a few police officers outside her apartment building, outside the Pokemon Center, and outside Sycamore Laboratories.

Shauna called once to ask to borrow notes for class, and seemed surprised that Serena was spending a relatively nice day (it was sunny and the temperature was cool and pleasing) cooped up inside her apartment.

"I'm studying really hard right now. Two quizzes next week." Serena used that as her excuse.

_"And you're not having your new boyfriend help you study?"_

Serena blushed. "We aren't officially calling ourselves boyfriend and girlfriend yet. But . . . his job for the government is taking up a lot of his time."

In truth, Serena did not know if Augustine was working that weekend, or even where he was. She had gone by the Pokemon Center on South Boulevard to retrieve Eevee, just so she could get a peek at any activity in the lab, but inside Sophie had told her that he had not been in at all that day. On her way back, she stopped by his apartment, knocked several times, and then jiggled the doorknob to find that it was locked. She left him messages every two hours, but never got a response. The version of studying she had done consisted of staring at her notes, unable to absorb any information, because her mind was somewhere else completely.

Her gut reaction was to assume the worst: Teleurac was keeping him locked up to ensure her cooperation. Realizing that line of thought was perhaps unwarranted, she remembered that he was supposed to be in some top secret meeting with the other Team Flare scientists.

Around eight o'clock Saturday night, her Holo Caster rang. It was a pre-recorded message from Augustine, whose holographic image looked tired.

_"Serena, I'm sorry I haven't been able to return your calls. I've been in meetings and in and out of laboratories all day. Mable wants me to stay here and work on this experiment until midnight, maybe later – depends on whether or not she's happy with the results. It's exhausting! Anyway, I'm supposed to be off tomorrow. If you want to come over to my place, there's a spare key under the welcome mat. _Bonne nuit, ma chérie. _Don't study too hard."_

"Aw," Serena cooed sympathetically as the message finished playing. Eevee, who was sitting at her feet under the kitchen table, looked up at her curiously, thinking that she was talking to him. She bent down and picked up Eevee, holding him in her lap as she reread the section of paper she had just typed.

* * *

><p>Serena arrived at his apartment at midmorning the next day, with a leashed Eevee in tow. One hand held a drink carrier with two cups of coffee, and a bag of breakfast pastries from a nearby café was in the other hand.<p>

She used the spare key mentioned in his message to go inside, and took care to lock the door behind her. While she tried to walk through the living room quietly, Eevee was scampering about, sniffing at everything, exploring this environment that was new to him. Eevee's insistence on checking out every nook and cranny of the living room made it hard for Serena to reach the kitchen, so she set the food, coffee, and her bag down on the coffee table while she let the Pokemon off his leash.

"Can you sit still here?" she whispered, crouching down so she could be closer to Eevee's level. Eevee sat down obediently.

"Good boy," she said approvingly, reaching into the bag and pulling out a lemon-flavored Pokepuff. She handed it to Eevee, who gobbled it up happily.

From there, Serena tiptoed to the back of the apartment, where she peeked inside Augustine's bedroom. He was lying on his stomach on top of a perfectly made bed, and his head was inches away from the nearest pillow. In addition, he was still fully dressed – he had even forgotten to take off his shoes the night before.

Serena chastised herself for not calling ahead to make sure he was awake first. But before she could turn back, Augustine rolled over and lazily started to push himself into a sitting position.

"This is a pleasant surprise," he said groggily upon seeing Serena, gazing at her through half-open eyes.

"I brought breakfast," she replied.

"Ah, _tu es magnifique._ Let me put on something more comfortable . . . and I'll just take it here in bed."

Serena went back into the living room and grabbed the bag of pastries and the coffee. She waited outside his bedroom until he called for her to come in.

"What did you bring me?" Augustine had changed into a gray T-shirt and purple sweatpants. He was sitting on his bed, leaning back against the headboard.

"Just the breakfast pastries from Café Introversion, and the strongest black coffee they had to offer," she told him as she walked over to his side. She set down the drink carrier on the nightstand and began to reach into the paper bag, but then Augustine patted the space on the bed next to him, inviting her to join him. She accepted the invitation, and distributed pastries while sitting next to him.

"You take good care of me, Serena," he said gratefully, running his fingertips over her shoulder.

"Eh, it's what I do, remember? Professor works late into the night, friend of professor brings breakfast the next morning because the professor is prone to skip meals when he has a lot to do." Serena responded, acting like it wasn't a big deal.

A small bark was heard from the living room.

"Oh! I brought Eevee. Hope you don't mind," she mentioned apologetically.

"No, not at all," said Augustine. He then whistled loudly; a few seconds later, Eevee had trotted into the bedroom and hopped up onto the bed, sitting himself cozily between the two humans.

Augustine ate silently, his eyes staring out into space. Serena watched him with concern for a while, before Eevee began pawing at her leg and she had to tell him that there was only one Pokepuff for him. Eevee looked at her with big, pleading eyes, as if his begging could magically make another Pokepuff appear.

"Something bothering you?" Serena asked Augustine after he let out a sigh.

"Everything's bothering me," he confessed, reaching out his hand to lay on Eevee's back and absentmindedly stroke the Pokemon's fur. "The things I saw yesterday . . . how did those scientists ever pass their ethics courses at university?"

Serena shook her head.

"They have other Pokemon in that underground facility, besides the ones we saw. And they were all malnourished and left to sit in their own waste inside their cages . . . none of them understood why this was happening to them. The scientists didn't even have the common courtesy to carry out experiments in a space away from where the Pokemon were being housed, so they all had to watch the experiments, and be terrified, and wonder when it would be their turn to suffer and die like that." He gulped down some coffee, and closed his eyes as Serena began rubbing his back soothingly.

"I told Teleurac that one condition I insisted on was more humane treatment of those Pokemon. If they were better cared for, we could get more out of them. He seemed pleased with that line of reasoning."

Serena clenched her hand into a fist. "Maybe I need to make another visit down there," she said.

"No you don't. If you free those Pokemon, they'll just go out and catch more. Besides, Teleurac told me that he has people watching you closely."

"Of course he does," said Serena bitterly, thinking about the abundance of police officers she had encountered the previous day. "But why does he insist on keeping so many secrets, and having people watch me, if he is really oh-so noble?"

"I know why," said Augustine shortly.

Serena leaned closer to him, expecting him to tell her everything. However, Augustine shook his head in denial, and pulled down the collar of his shirt to show a small microphone taped to his chest.

"It's classified, though," he added.

Once the shock of seeing the microphone wore off, Serena mouthed "Write it down?" to him. Augustine shook his head again and mouthed back "Not telling you."

"And please, Serena, don't go snooping around. Promise me you won't. I don't need the added stress in my life." Augustine pleaded, taking care to speak clearly and loudly. He pointed to his chest, at the approximate location where the microphone was taped.

"Fine. I promise," said Serena reluctantly. Making Augustine wear that wire must have been a way in which Teleurac could ensure that she stay out of trouble – she could hardly say no to Augustine, after all, especially when he used the human equivalent of Baby Doll Eyes on her, followed by a grateful smile after she made her promise.

"_Merci_," he said. "Now, what do you have planned for today? Anything exciting?"

"No, not really. I was just going to study and watch TV," answered Serena. "You?"

"The same, but perhaps we can do all of that while enjoying one another's company." Augustine reached over to the nightstand, grabbed the remote, and turned on the TV to a news channel. The current story was about the owner of Sushi High Roller being arrested after he refused to comply with the new policies regarding food quality and quantity. What followed was coverage of the arrests of workers at the Power Plant, and then a story about Wikstrom of the Elite Four offering a seminar on training Steel-type Pokemon. When commercials aired, he flipped through channels until he found a movie starring Diantha as an explorer in Johto.

"I here she's filming a commercial for the Governor," he commented idly.

"Promoting more 'environmentally-friendly' living?" asked Serena, recalling how Teleurac mentioned the possibility of her starring in such a commercial.

Augustine nodded, following up with a yawn. Strong coffee was evidently not working this morning.

By the time the movie was over, Augustine had scooted closer to Serena (leading Eevee to move to the edge of the bed) and draped an arm around her shoulders. She didn't mind, and even welcomed it when he pulled her in so that her head was leaning against his shoulder.

"You said you had studying to do?" he inquired as the credits began rolling.

"That's right," she breathed, "I have two quizzes coming up: one in biochemistry and one in Modern Kalosian History."

"It's a good thing that you have a scientist and certified Pokemon expert sitting next to you," said Augustine. "It'll be like a study date – I'll even make you dinner like I promised the other night. And you still need to let me look over your paper on Charizard and Mega Evolution."

"Um . . . ." Serena shrugged. "I didn't bring my notes or my computer with me."

"You can go grab them later tonight while I cook," he offered before changing the channel again. He settled on a show dedicated to exploring the world's different ecosystems and the Pokemon that lived there. This episode in particular featured Kanto's Mt. Moon and the vast caverns inside it; the current scene depicted a group of Clefairy dancing around a giant Moon Stone.

Serena snorted in amusement. "Your idea for a date is helping me study?"

"You want to do well in school. I want you to do well in school, and I want to make you a delicious dinner, and I want to spend lots of time with you. After all, you are my girl- wait, are you all right with me calling you my girlfriend? Because I don't know what we are, exactly. We like each other, have for a while now, and we're definitely more than friends, so . . . ."

Serena smirked. "Augustine, if you call me your girlfriend," she began, "I may have to start calling you my boyfriend."

"Oh the horror!" Augustine laughed heartily as he leaned in and gently kissed her on the cheek.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, after her paper was perfect according to him, Augustine walked Serena back to her apartment. Instead of content blissful quiet this time, Serena still argued about some of the changes he made.<p>

"I'm just saying, it's my paper. I think I should be able to give it a fun, witty title if I want to."

"Serena, 'Charizard the Mega-Pseudo-Dragon' is hardly professional-sounding. If you're serious about pursuing science as a career, boring titles that describe the subject of the paper are the place to start," Augustine reminded her.

"But 'Analysis of the Differences in Typing Physiology of Charizard and Mega Charizard X?' _Really_? Where's the pizzazz? The fun? I'd rather read about a Mega-Pseudo-Dragon, personally."

"When you have your doctorate, _chérie_, you can rewrite all the conventions you want. But right now, you'll do well to play by established rules."

The two of them reached the front door of her apartment before they knew it.

"Well, Augustine, thanks for helping me out. You may need to provide titles for my papers in the future so I know they're good," said Serena as she dug in her bag for her keys. "Um, especially after you had such a crummy day at work yesterday. Thanks so much."

"Anytime." Augustine smiled. He began to lean his head forward, but then he drew back and looked to the side as his cheeks turned pink.

"Serena . . . um . . . I-uh . . . hm. Could I – perhaps – kiss you? On the mouth, that is. You know, like a good-night kiss?" he asked nervously, looking down at his feet and scratching the back of his head.

She grinned, finding it adorable that he was asking for permission to kiss her. Her eyes gazed upon his lips briefly, and she wondered how they would feel against her own – wonderful, most likely.

"Augustine," she began as she took a step closer to him, "If you kiss me, I will kiss you back."

He giggled briefly, and his cheeks grew pinker.

Serena raised herself up on her tiptoes, placing her hands on Augustine's shoulders to steady herself. As she tilted her head up to him, he tilted his down, and they slowly moved their faces closer to one another, reveling in the anticipation. Finally, their lips met. She felt his hands rest on her waist, touching her with only minimal pressure. His lips were as she imagined they would be, soft and warm; that, combined with his closeness and the faint remains of his cologne from the previous day, all delighted her.

Augustine was the one to end the kiss when he slowly pulled his head back. Serena saw the awe and joy in his tired eyes, and the small smile on his face.

"We should make this a regular thing," she suggested, her voice soft and endearing. She would have to ask her mom or Shauna what the metaphorical "fireworks" felt like to them.

"I agree. One hundred percent."

Serena slid her hands off his shoulders, down his chest, and pulled them back to herself. She turned to the door of her apartment, intending to unlock it. Instead, she whipped around back to Augustine, raised herself up on her tiptoes, took his face into her hands, and kissed him again.

"See you tomorrow," she said as she pulled away.

"Good night, Serena," said Augustine with a big grin on his face. He walked backwards down the hall for a bit, not breaking eye contact with her, until he finally decided to turn around and see where he was going. She noticed a spring his step and she heard him whistle – it could have been real or imagined, but she didn't care. It wasn't until he had stepped into the elevator and waved to her one final time that she moved to enter her apartment.

Once she was inside, Serena locked the door and practically floated to her bedroom. She went through her pre-bedtime routine in a trance, and when her head hit the pillow sleep evaded her; she was too busy replaying her first kiss with Augustine in her head, over and over again.


	12. Chapter 12

**TWELVE**

In the middle of November, walls went up around Centrico Plaza. These walls, erected in a single day thanks to the efforts of construction workers and their various bulky Fighting-types, surrounded the entire plaza, and there was talk among the workers of starting work on the domed roof the following day.

Having finished her business in the small shop on Hibernal Avenue she was visiting, Serena and Eevee walked a little closer to the walls; she felt the eyes of a nearby police officer on her. For a moment, she wondered if the police knew why they were being ordered to keep a close eye on her, or if that officer in particular was secretly Team Flare just like Renshaw was.

One worker, after being flown over the wall onto Hibernal Avenue by his Fletchinder, posted a sign that read "Centrico Plaza has been CLOSED by Executive Order." When asked by a tourist why the Plaza was closed, the worker said that there was a construction project planned – one that would in no way compromise Prism Tower, he added, in hopes of placating the tourist's frustration. The tourist, still irate that she couldn't go take a picture of herself at the Tower, turned and walked away, grumbling something in her native tongue.

Serena sat down on a park bench, hoisted Eevee into her lap, and spent the next couple of hours watching people go by. During that time, several people stopped by to ask for autographs or pictures with her, all of which she obliged. Yet nobody she deemed to be of interest had gone to or from the walls in that span of time, so she got up to leave, taking a detour through Rouge Plaza.

With the sun setting and casting ethereal oranges and pinks on the Lumiose skyline, Serena found the alley by the Looker Bureau and walked through it slowly, cradling Eevee close to her chest. She found it odd that there was nobody in this alley, not even Team Flare grunts or police or street-prowling hooligans.

The manhole was there, with its cover in place as usual. She returned Eevee to his Pokeball, lifted one end of the cover and began dragging it out of the way, only to see that underneath the cover, a foot down into the ground, was nothing but solid concrete. Disappointed, she let out a huff and put the cover back in place. Almost immediately after she stood back up, her Holo Caster beeped.

_"We're still on for dinner, right_?" Augustine asked her.

"Oh - yeah! Of course! I was doing some shopping, and then I ran into some fans, and – yeah. I'm on my way. Please don't let dinner get cold."

_"Serena, _chérie,_ I just put it in the oven. It should be ready by the time you get here. See you soon."_

When Augustine ended the call, Serena gazed at the manhole cover one last time. "Well played, Teleurac," she murmured.

* * *

><p>On his way to sit down on the couch, Augustine grabbed a box of matches out of the kitchen. He used them to light candles he had positioned on the coffee table, relying on them to illuminate the area while the electric lights were turned off for the evening.<p>

"Nice mood lighting," Serena commented once she emerged from the bathroom.

Augustine reached out to her, the palm of his hand open. She placed her hand in his, and he gently pulled her closer as she sat next to him.

"You think so?" he said, letting go of her hand so his arm could snake its way around her waist.

"_Oui. C'est très romantique."_

"Someone's been practicing," said Augustine as he leaned over to give her a kiss. Serena giggled in response, pleased that her work on pronouncing Kalosian words had not gone unnoticed.

She grabbed her Holo Caster off the table and opened a web browser to a blog providing coverage for a Pokemon battle tournament.

"Checking the progress on the Kanto tournament?" asked Augustine.

"Yeah." Serena said as she started reading the latest blog post. "The guy I'm pulling for has an . . . unconventional style. I don't think I've ever seen anyone try to use a ticket for a cruise liner in a battle before. But he's got a huge following and everyone loves his Pokemon . . . his Omastar has even been raised to god-like status . . . Gosh, I wish this tournament was being broadcast here in Kalos – he won! His Venomoth took down the opponent's last Dragonite! And I missed it! Look at this, Augustine." She shoved her Holo Caster into his face and gave him a moment to read the blog post.

"Impressive," he said.

"That was the last battle of the day, so . . . ." Serena closed the web browser and stuck her Holo Caster in her pocket. Her eyes caught the flame of one of the candles; this one in particular was shaped like Prism Tower, and her mind started to wander.

"You know, I saw something peculiar today while I was out. Centrico Plaza's been walled off, by executive order apparently. Do you know anything about that?" she inquired innocently, twirling a lock of his hair between her fingers.

"I might," said Augustine. He pointed to her pocket. She pulled her Holo Caster back out and placed it in his outstretched hand.

"A park is going to be built around Prism Tower," said Augustine, taking care to clearly enunciate every word. On the Holo Caster, he created a new text message and typed something into it before handing it back to Serena.

_He's building a device inside Prism Tower._

"What kind of park?" asked Serena. She took her Holo Caster back and typed her own sentence: _What kind of device?_

"Nothing spectacular. Flowers, fountains, playgrounds for children and small Pokemon, that kind of thing. Construction won't begin until he figures out a name for it." Augustine took the Holo Caster back, read what she had typed, and then typed something else into the next line.

_Need-to-know basis. Right now I don't know._

"He could just call it the 'Look-at-me-I'm-a-Gogoat's-ass' Garden."

Her comment earned a brief laugh from Augustine.

_I learn of his plan piece-by-piece. The only perk of this job._ Augustine typed into the Holo Caster.

_Know his endgame?_ Serena added.

_Also need-to-know basis. _

She huffed. _Gonna keep digging?_

_That's the plan. I'll let you know if I learn anything else._

"You look beautiful tonight, Serena," he said as he typed out that sentence. "I could wile away countless hours just gazing upon your face." Again, he was careful to speak clearly, but maintain a smooth, enamoring tone.

"Oh!" Serena's cheeks flushed. She watched him point to his chest, at the spot where the microphone was taped. "You flatter me, Augustine, you handsome devil." She typed: _I thought you weren't going to tell me anything!_

"I only speak the truth, _ma belle,_" he added while taking the Holo Caster from her and typing: _Changed my mind. _

She took the device back and added: _Any places where I can snoop around and 'stumble' on a new entrance into their facility?_

Augustine shook his head before inputting his response: _We teleport in and out using Abra. New place to meet it each day. He calls me and tells me where it will be that morning. Can't tell you since everything I send and receive on the Holo Caster is being monitored. Yours is too._

"Anyway . . . um . . ." Serena searched her mind for thing to talk about while Augustine typed. "My Dragon-type Physiology instructor hated your title for the paper. She said it didn't sound like something I would come up with."

"_Really?"_ he said.

"Yeah. I guess I'll just have to stick with 'Charizard the Mega-Pseudo-Dragon,' scientific propriety be damned." She leaned in to see what he had typed.

"If you go with that, I will break up with you." Augustine joked.

Serena sighed in disappointment, and she wished that whoever was listening on the other end of Augustine's wire thought her sigh was in response to his threat to dump her.

"Fine. I'll keep your boring proper-sounding title if it'll spare your feelings."

After deleting the text message they had been using to nonverbally communicate, Augustine found a website that streamed TV shows, and he and Serena watched a few episodes of a sitcom starring a talking Espurr and its long-suffering Trainer. Sitcom episodes turned into a movie, followed by another movie, during which they fell asleep together on the couch.

* * *

><p>November transitioned easily into December, which brought colder weather, the occasional snowfall, and the holiday season. Lumiose City went all-out when it came to decorating for Christmas: street lamps were wrapped with garlands, storefront windows boasted paper cutouts of snowflakes, holiday music played everywhere, and Delibird would roam the streets, giving out small gifts of candy to passerby. However, one noticeable decoration was missing this year.<p>

"It's just not the same without the lights!" Shauna complained. She, Serena, and the three boys were standing in front of Hotel Richissme, which in years past had hosted a spectacular display of Christmas lights. This year, though, there were only garlands and barely decorated Christmas trees in front of the hotel.

"I know, but think of how much energy we waste on frivolous things like Christmas lights! Who needs to make memories with your friends when there's a world that needs saving?" Serena replied in a mockingly pompous tone.

"Wouldn't it have been a great picture, Shauna? You and me in front of the Richissme in all its lit up splendor, commemorating our first Christmas as a couple," said Calem wistfully as he wrapped an arm around Shauna's shoulders.

Serena looked away from Calem and Shauna, establishing eye contact with Tierno. She smiled congenially at her friend.

"So, when's your show again?" she asked him; she remembered, but she was fishing for conversation starters.

"Christmas Eve, at Restaurant Le Yeah! You'll be there, right?" Tierno replied.

"You bet! And I'll personally make sure that Aug- I mean, Professor Sycamore comes. I won't let him cancel on you like he did on all of us tonight." Serena said, unsure of whether or not her other friends were on a first-name basis with the Professor.

"His government job really eats up his time," commented Trevor. "He barely has time to oversee my group's projects anymore."

Serena's Holo Caster beeped. It was a text message from Emma.

_Serena, you'll never believe what I saw yesterday. Three guys in red Team Flare suits were in the alleyway behind Café Triste! I followed them to see where they were going, but they just disappeared without a trace. No sign of them anywhere, and no place where I think they could have vanished. I called Mr. Looker and told him, so maybe he'll come back here once he's done in Unova to help us out. Maybe the three of us can investigate what's happening together!_

This sighting by Emma was the first Serena had seen or heard about any Team Flare activity in Lumiose since the walls went up around Centrico Plaza. She personally had not seen anybody in red suits roaming around alleyways, or even encountered an Abra anywhere in the city since she learned that they were how people now got to and from the underground facility. At least while her attempts at snooping around had been unsuccessful, someone else had picked up on what was happening.

"Who was that from?" asked Shauna.

"It was from Emma," answered Serena as she stashed her Holo Caster. "She may want my help on a developing case."

"She's the cute detective girl, right?" Tierno inquired.

Before Serena could answer, her Holo Caster beeped again. Her expression soured when she saw Teleurac's holographic image pop out of the device.

"_Greetings, Citizens of Kalos,_" Teleurac began, _"You will notice that this message is only coming to select people. Receivers have been selected at random, and we are doing this to conserve power and money that would be spent sending it to every device. If you are receiving this broadcast, please invite others to come closer to you, because what I have to say is for everyone. I will give you one minute to do so."_

"You heard the man. Gather around, everyone." Serena ordered her friends. Her mind raced with possibilities of what Teleurac could possibly want to discuss.

_ "Thank you. My fellow Kalosians, I would like to thank you very much for your efforts in protecting the environment. According to data that was just now compiled by the esteemed Professor Sycamore and his team of scientists, emissions of harmful gases into the atmosphere have decreased significantly over the past month, our water supply has less toxic chemicals in it, and we project that our food and water supplies can adequately sustain Kalos for another three generations. In addition, progress on exploring renewable energy sources is coming along. We are doing well, Kalos. And soon, more resources and effort will be put into bolstering our defenses."_

"I wonder what they're looking into," Trevor mused. Serena opened her mouth, considering answering, but out of the corner of her eye she saw two police officers standing in front of the hotel.

_ "I know many of you have been curious about the walls that have gone up around Centrico Plaza. Those walls are there as a construction project is currently underway. Hopefully in time to ring in the New Year, work on the Prism Park of Lumiose City will have been completed. It will be a place for all people and Pokemon to come together in harmony. In addition, solar panels will be installed in this park, and on Prism Tower. The solar energy captured here will afford us enough energy to be able to enjoy the light of Prism Tower in the evenings again._

_"It has been a great privilege and honor to serve as your Governor, Kalos. And it saddens me that malicious, untrue rumors about myself and my administration are spreading among you, as well as reaching foreign ears! Fellow Kalosians, our strength comes from our unity and striving for common goals. We cannot wholly tap into that strength if some of us believe any false murmurings they hear. Please pay no heed to any unfounded accusations directed towards the government, and if you are spreading such rumors, I ask you to cease and desist. Put your own selfish needs aside and think about how your fearmongering affects your peers. Thank you, Kalos, and good night."_

Teleurac's holographic image disappeared.

"Wow," said Calem. "I haven't heard any rumors going around."

Serena shrugged. "Well, I heard that he and lots of his people are the next generation of Team Flare," she said, keeping her voice low.

Tierno gasped. Shauna squeaked in surprise. Trevor whispered "No way." Calem just stared at her, dumbfounded.

"It's ridiculous, though," added Serena. "I'm not going to worry until another weapon of mass destruction pops out of the ground."

A glance over towards the hotel confirmed that the police officers there were paying no attention to her. She fought back the urge to smile in satisfaction once she surveyed her friends' expressions; they still looked as if they were flabbergasted by the idea, but perhaps the wheels in their heads were now turning. Her friends had a tendency to question and investigate, which had served Kalos and the world well three years ago and would hopefully do so again.


	13. Chapter 13

**THIRTEEN**

Although it was not what he had intended to retrieve, Augustine pulled a beaten-looking spiral notebook out of his desk's file cabinet once he noticed it was in there. This notebook, which had been in pristine condition a year ago, was now wrinkled and marked with coffee stains and a long black scar running diagonally down the front cover. The pages inside contained notes and pictures documenting how he and Serena raised his Garchomp, starting the day after a Gible followed him home from outside Coumarine City.

He flipped through the notebook, skimming over log entries written by both himself and Serena, spending slightly more time on her entries so he could trace his fingers over the small, neatly-lettered words she had imprinted on the page, trying to feel some connection with her. On the page opposite of one log entry was a picture of Augustine trying to teach Gible to play catch; the ball had sailed right over Gible's head, and the Pokemon was looking up with his mouth wide open in an attempt to catch it. She had captioned: "Good thing he decided to become a scientist and not a professional ball player!"

The caption made him chuckle, but then he felt a twinge of longing. His work for the Department required very long days, leaving precious little time for his own research, and the time he set aside to spend with Serena was slowly dwindling. In the past weeks, any evenings the two of them did spend together began later at night and usually resulted in an overnight stay by one of them. He had now left a spare set of pajamas at Serena's apartment, and she had left one at his.

Tonight, in particular, he hoped she didn't resent him too much for having to suddenly cancel plans to have dinner with her and her friends when Teleurac called him into work. At that moment, Teleurac was probably finishing up his address to the public, giving them statistics about cleaner air and water that were greatly embellished and not at all what the Professor had said they were, and lying to everybody about what was being built in Centrico Plaza.

The lab was kept open and not shut down for being too big a drain on power, but the price Augustine paid was his compliance in the suffering and death of countless Pokemon. He may not have been administering the electrical shocks himself, but he stood by and let it happen as he recorded and analyzed data, telling himself that at least now the Pokemon were no longer kept in cages and had plenty to eat as they waited their turn for experimentation. However, none of that justified what was being done to those Pokemon, or why, and the scant information he had gathered on Teleurac's true plans was hardly worth it to him.

* * *

><p>On the day before Christmas Eve, Augustine arrived at his office and walked with dragging feet to his desk. He stuck his hand in his pocket and fumbled around for a bit until his fingers grabbed hold on a small box, and he pulled it out and looked at it. He hadn't done the best job of wrapping it – or tying the ribbon on top of it – but in his sleepy distracted mind, he thought the contents would be an acceptable Christmas present for Serena.<p>

He set the box on his desk, next to the framed picture of him with his parents. From there, he turned his attention to his computer and pulled up the spreadsheets he had been working on last night, quickly reviewing the data before sending them to Aliana. The rest of the morning was spent browsing the internet or recording a "Just been thinking about you and hoping you're having a good day" message for Serena before his meeting later that afternoon.

The sound of heels walking on tile floor caught his attention, and he looked up to see Diantha approaching his desk. She was wearing her usual flowing, winged coat, and a sparkly red beret sat on top of her head, covering almost all of her pixie cut.

"Diantha, hello!" he said cheerfully, suppressing a yawn.

"_Bonjour,_ Augustine! I thought I would drop by on my way to City Hall," said Diantha as she rounded the desk to his chair. She stooped over and exchanged the customary Kalosian greeting with him. "We barely see each other anymore."

"That's right – you just got back from filming that TV show in Sinnoh, didn't you?" asked Augustine; he noticed her glancing at the open browser window on his computer, which was on a website for planning weekend getaways.

"_Oui, mon ami_. I have been working very hard, unlike someone," Diantha smirked as she nodded towards his computer.

Augustine's cheeks grew pink, and he closed the browser hastily. "I don't have anything to do until a meeting with my colleagues at one, where we'll be discussing the next phase of our project. Which, coincidentally, is also at City Hall. What time is it?"

Diantha checked her watch. "Eleven thirty. Care to grab lunch on the way?"

"I'd love that," said Augustine. He powered down his computer, patted his pockets to make sure everything was in place, and then his eyes fell on the little wrapped box. Although he knew that the lab assistants and staff were not ones to run off with things, he still stashed it away in his desk drawer, feeling it would be more secure there.

"What was that?" asked Diantha curiously.

"A, uh, Christmas present," said Augustine; he then realized that Diantha didn't know about him and Serena.

"For whom?" she pressed.

"For . . . Serena," admitted Augustine, "We've been dating for two months now."

"Really?" Diantha said as he stood up. She sounded intrigued and excited. "You and her? Cute! I guess there aren't any young men her age who can keep up with her emotionally and intellectually."

"There are thirty-three-year-olds that have a hard time keeping up with her," Augustine informed his friend. "I should know. I'm one of them."

* * *

><p>Diantha had planned to go to City Hall to apply for a Pokemon Breeding license, so she intended to part ways with Augustine at the front entrance. Instead, she and Augustine ran into Teleurac in the foyer.<p>

"Professor, your timing is impeccable!" Teleurac said to Augustine as the two men shook hands. However, he soon caught sight of Diantha, and his eyes widened in awe and reverence.

"Good afternoon, Governor," said Diantha cordially, nodding her head slightly.

"Madame Diantha! An honor to see you again!" Teleurac floated over to Diantha and took hold of one of her hands. He raised her hands up to his lips and kissed her fingertips. "What brings you to City Hall today, _ma belle?_"

"I am applying to be a Pokemon Breeder," answered Diantha. "I have a young niece who desperately wants her own Ralts, but they are so hard to come by in the wild these days!"

Augustine's eyes flickered briefly over to Teleurac, and he wished he could tell Diantha what had become of all the wild Ralts.

"A worthwhile endeavor, Pokemon Breeding. Madame, before you go about that, would you care to accompany us to the board room? I am sure you will find the scientific research we have planned quite interesting."

"I would, thank you." Diantha grinned.

Flashing his usual crooked grin, Teleurac placed his hand on Diantha's shoulder and guided her towards the elevator, with Augustine following behind them. During the ride up, Augustine noticed how Teleurac would look up and down Diantha's body, his eyes lingering a little too long on her chest and her legs. Diantha glanced at Teleurac, seeming to notice, but then looked straight ahead at the closed elevator door.

"You are like a classic work of art, Diantha," said Teleurac smoothly. "Photographs do not do you justice. One must see you in person to fully appreciate your beauty."

"Thank you," said Diantha stiffly. She turned her torso away from him slightly, and Augustine could see on her face how the attention was making her uncomfortable.

"Are you familiar with what the Department of Environmental Sustainability is undertaking in order to provide Kalos with clean, renewable energy?" Teleurac continued.

"No, I am not," replied Diantha as she looked over to Augustine with pleading eyes.

"It's simple, really," began Augustine, picking up on her cue. "See –"

"Allow me to explain, Professor," Teleurac interrupted him, holding up a hand as he spoke. At that moment, the elevator door opened to reveal a long hallway. The three of them stepped out onto the plush green carpet and began walking down the hallway.

"As a Pokemon Trainer, you know that each Pokemon has power and strengths that humans do not have. Our team of scientists at the Department, who are currently consulting with Professor Sycamore here, hope to capture some of the innate energy in each Pokemon and use it to power our lives. There have been bumps on the road, though, as a few Pokemon have not survived testing. We have determined that those Pokemon with higher Special Attack ratings and higher Special Defense ratings provide the greatest energy output and are the hardiest, respectively. Ideally, we could maintain a group of powerful, sturdy Pokemon that could each provide us with energy over their entire lifespans."

"That's fascinating!" Diantha said. Although Teleurac smiled at the display of enthusiasm on her part, Augustine had been friends with her long enough to know when she was being sincere and when she was putting her acting skills to use. This was a moment when he believed she was not at all impressed with what Teleurac had to say.

"I thought you would be intrigued," said Teleurac as he opened a door into his office and held it open so Diantha and Augustine could go inside.

The clock hanging on the wall over his liquor cabinet showed that it was twelve forty-five, fifteen minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin. As Teleurac approached his liquor cabinet, his Holo Caster began to beep. He answered the call, and the holographic image of a square-jawed woman with her hair in a sleek updo materialized.

"President Oria! What a pleasant surprise," Teleurac greeted his caller.

_"Cut the crap, Alexandre,"_ snapped Oria. _"I got a transmission of the address you gave your constituency last night. You may be able to fool your citizens like that, but I'm still not convinced something fishy isn't afoot."_

Diantha and Augustine exchanged looks.

"I don't see how this is any of your business," said Teleurac bluntly. "If there was a problem with corruption in Kalos, I would have dealt with it already."

_"It is my business when Unovian journalists go missing in Lumiose City,"_ responded Oria. _"They were there to report on your new conservation policies and other changes to civil liberties happening in Kalos, and their news station loses contact with them three days after they arrive in your region."_

"If you like, I could launch an investigation," said Teleurac diplomatically.

_"Stop skirting the issue, Alexandre. My cabinet thinks there's an oncoming human rights catastrophe in Kalos."_

"A human rights catastrophe? Why? Because a few people get arrested for disorderly conduct? Because musicians and artists are having their work censored because said work is deemed not suitable for public consumption? Because my administration listens in on the occasional Holo Caster message? . . . My goal is the safety and security of all citizens of Kalos, in addition to making sure that there is still a Kalos for future generations to enjoy. A few unruly dissidents or inappropriate artists cannot be allowed to let their selfish ambitions risk our regional unity and strength." Teleurac struggled to keep his voice even, but every now and then his annoyance and offense cracked through.

_"Regional strength and unity? That doesn't excuse what you're doing to your citizens,"_ commented Oria.

"I don't tell you how to govern Unova, so don't tell me how to govern Kalos!" snapped Teleurac. "When I visited Castelia City some years ago, I saw the homeless begging for scraps of food, while the wealthy stuffed their faces. The crime rate was high, and the smog was so thick – how is there anyone in that city who doesn't have cancer? You should worry about fixing your own problems before you go commenting on mine!"

_"We are working on environmental efforts here in Unova, but they're just not as extreme as yours. People need to gradually ease into this kind of thing,"_ said Oria, trying to stay calm.

"But by the time you've nicely eased into it, it could be too late," objected Teleurac. "Is that what you will tell your grandchildren when they have no clean water or air? That you had to think of the people who couldn't adjust to change quickly enough?"

_"You're starting to sound ridiculous, Governor."_

"Perhaps the world would be better off without Unova!" shouted Teleurac.

Stunned silence filled the room.

_"I hope that wasn't a threat. You know I don't respond well to them," _said Oria indignantly.

"I await your response, _President_," sneered Teleurac before he ended the call. He looked up at Augustine and Diantha, allowing them to see the fury and frustration in his eyes.

"That call . . . you did not hear it. Understand?"

Augustine and Diantha both nodded obediently.

"Oria . . . always poking her nose where it doesn't belong. Anyway, it's one o'clock, so I guess we can officially begin our meeting, Professor." He looked to Diantha. "It was a pleasure seeing you again, Diantha. Would you care to join me for dinner tonight?"

"That's kind of you, Governor, but I already made plans with Drasna," declined Diantha.

"Oh, but I insist!"

"Then perhaps some other time," said Diantha coolly as she walked to the door. She turned to look at Augustine once more. "You must come for New Years' dinner, Augustine. Siebold will be preparing a feast! Bring Serena, too."

"All right. I'll call you about it later," said Augustine.

With one last wave to her friend, Diantha exited Teleurac's office. Teleurac's gaze lingered on the door for a while before he opened his liquor cabinet.

"Before you begin, Governor, I have a question for you," said Augustine, lacing his fingers together and twiddling his thumbs nervously.

"I'm listening," said Teleurac as he poured some brandy into a small glass.

"What exactly is being built in Centrico Plaza? I know the device itself is inside Prism Tower, and is attached to it, but – I don't know what it _does._"

"Why do you need to know what it does?" asked Teleurac critically.

"I . . . just . . . would like to be fully informed if I'm going to work for you. I want to be sure that these, erm, ethically questionable procedures being performed on our Pokemon are justifiable." Augustine used his firmest tone of voice, hoping to project confidence even though he knew it was likely he would be shot down.

Teleurac scoffed. "When I deem it fit that you know, I will tell you. Anyway, onto business, shall we?"

Feeling utterly dejected, Augustine nodded.

"The next phase of your project is relatively simple," began Teleurac. "It starts next week – I'm giving you a small vacation for Christmas. What you will be doing is meeting with a Pokemon Trainer by the name of Bernard Lecroux. After he was discovered to be illegally possessing Pokemon that we confiscated from him, he faced the choice to either go to prison or to assist us in our research."

"What will I be doing with him?" asked Augustine uneasily. He thought of how shattered Serena would be if she knew that Bernard was in trouble again.

"I want you to teach him to use Mega Evolution."

Augustine gulped. "Sir, with all due respect, I research Mega Evolution. I am no expert at using it, and I have only accomplished it once."

"With your Garchomp? I know. But you know how it is done, and you can show Monsieur Lecroux how to do it with his Medicham," said Teleurac before he took a sip of his drink. "This is the reason you are on board, Professor. We can capture plenty of energy from Pokemon such as Alakazam or Porygon-Z, but think of how much we could get from an Alakazam that is Mega-Evolved! I want Bernard's Medicham to be used for preliminary testing of Mega-Evolved Pokemon, to see how much more they have to offer us."

Augustine stuck his hands in his pockets to hide how sweaty and clammy they were becoming. Instead of directly stating his displeasure with the idea, of telling Teleurac how he felt that using Mega-Evolved Pokemon in such a way was a slap in the face to what he had dedicated his life to, he let his glare at Teleurac communicate all of that.

"I know you're not thrilled, Augustine, but you're hardly in a position to refuse. It would be such a poor way to repay me, now that I've made sure that the Pokemon in our facility have open spaces to live in and enough to eat and drink. Besides, this is all for the greater good!" Teleurac took another drink. He reached over to his desk and picked up a sealed envelope.

"Before you meet with the Abra that will transport you to the lab, I want you to deliver this to the Looker Bureau. It's a little case for young Mademoiselle Emma to solve – apparently this criminal gang from Kanto, Team Rocket, has been spotted in Kalos. I need her to look into it."

"Have they really?" a skeptical Augustine asked.

"No, but I have people laying out clues and a convincing trail for her to follow . . . Serena's not the only one who likes to snoop around, apparently." Teleurac handed Augustine the envelope.

With a sigh, Augustine turned to leave.

* * *

><p>When he was done in the Team Flare lab that night, it was almost eleven-thirty. He fully intended to go home and go straight to sleep, but Serena had left him a message earlier that evening inviting him over if he had the time. He called her back to see if the invitation still stood.<p>

Luckily for him, it did.

"From now on, you can just come over whenever you want," Serena told him as he lay his head in her lap, enjoying the way her hand felt as it cradled his head and her thumb stroked his cheek.

"You don't have a spare key, though," he said, tilting his head to the side to lean into her hand.

"I can get one made. I'll wrap it up in a little box and give it to you for Christmas," said Serena as she began to comb her fingers through his hair.

"Sounds like a great Christmas present." Augustine smiled faintly.

"Oh, you'll be getting another present. It'll be _much_ better," said Serena as she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Augustine's tired face lit up.

"We've been nice all year. It's time to be a little naughty, don't you think?" Serena added, trying to sound seductive, but she soon broke into a fit of embarrassed giggles.

"Didn't your mother invite me to Christmas dinner this year?" Augustine reminded her as he blushed furiously and started laughing as well.

"Yes, but we're not spending the night in Vaniville." Serena leaned in so her face was closer to his.

Augustine's laughter moved seamlessly into a yawn.

"He gave me this next week off," he mentioned.

"That's nice of him," said Serena. She looked away from him and stared at the blank television, her mind likely thinking bitter thoughts about Teleurac. At the same time, she dragged her fingers out of his hair and held her hand to her chest, clenched up in a fist.

After a moment in which neither of them spoke, Augustine sat up and arranged himself so that he was seated on the couch next to her. "Serena, what's wrong?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Nothing. Sorry. I just got to thinking about . . . things."

"What _things?_ Tell me." Augustine implored, cupping one of her cheeks and turning her head to face him. He told himself that eventually she would be broken of this habit, of pretending nothing was wrong when something was clearly on her mind.

"It's dumb, and I shouldn't bring this up because you're tired and stressed . . ." Serena paused expectantly and watched him, hoping he'd leave it alone. However, Augustine gave her a look that invited her to continue.

Serena sighed.

"I don't know how much longer I can keep doing this."

Augustine's heart sank. Surely she didn't mean what he thought she meant.

"I'm not talking about us!" Serena added reassuringly, grabbing his hands and bringing them down to rest in her lap. "Believe me, Augustine, you make me happy. But it drives me up the wall that we keep going about our lives, work and school and our stay-in dates, while Teleurac's plotting something dastardly for Kalos, and there's not much we can do about it. You have to see Pokemon suffer each day, and you don't even know _why_ – I don't know how you're keeping it together."

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead, closing his eyes tight to keep in the tears that were forming. Of course he had never told her about his occasional sleepless nights, or how when he did sleep he was often visited by nightmares filled with the cries of dying Pokemon. She also didn't know how staring into his own reflection was starting to repulse him, or how he would never work in science again if it meant he could put an end to Teleurac's plans.

"I'm not," he said, his voice soft and strained. He inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of her hair. Serena let go of his hands, and he felt her hands slide their way up his sides and onto his back, and she pulled herself closer to him to embrace him tightly. He hugged her back, allowing his head to rest in the crook between her neck and shoulder. The comforting sensation of her fingers combing through his hair soon followed.

Not much could have ruined the moment, but Augustine did as he yawned. It had escaped before he tried to shut his mouth and keep it in.

"Come on, sleepyhead," said Serena as she pushed the two of them apart. Taking him by the hand, she led him into her bedroom and sat him down on the bed.

"Is Christmas coming early?" asked Augustine, yawning again.

"No it isn't." Serena went to her closet and pulled out a gray T-shirt and plaid pajama pants. "Here," she said as she tossed them to him. Augustine slowly changed clothes, taking off the microphone that was taped to his chest and setting the battery pack on the nightstand. He extended the wire and draped it over the bedframe so it hung directly over the pillows.

Serena wanted to ask him why Teleurac was still making him wear that thing, but instead she pointed to it and shook her head in exaggerated disapproval. Augustine shrugged, and then covered his eyes while Serena changed into her own pajamas: a pink camisole and pajama pants with a repeating Pokeball pattern.

She walked over to the bed and pulled the covers back, allowing Augustine to crawl underneath them. Her bed was long enough to accommodate how much taller he was than her, but it was narrow enough that two people could only share it if they got cozy. Serena climbed into bed, turned off the lamp on her nearest nightstand, and curled up next to him so that her head lay on his shoulder and a hand rested lazily on his chest.

"We stay over at each other's places so often," Augustine noted, speaking softly into her hair. "Maybe we should just . . . erm . . . you know." He felt Serena shift slightly, propping herself to look up at him. His stomach dropped; she must have caught on to what he was trying to ask her, and he had no way of telling how she was going to respond.

"Dammit, Augustine. I was going to ask you about that at the end of February. Assuming we're still together by then, of course."

"The end of February? That's oddly specific, and a ways off," said Augustine as he drew his arm around her shoulders.

"That's when those fancy new condos on South Boulevard will be put on sale. We can look at those, spend a couple of months looking at other places, and have more than enough time to learn if we can actually live together. I want to, but I know it could make or break our relationship."

"You're right, _cherie_." Augustine gave her a gentle kiss. "It's smart to not rush . . . ." his sentence was interrupted as a large yawn escaped his mouth.

"We can talk about this later. Right now, you need to go to sleep," said Serena; she sounded excited, but also tired herself. After the two of them shared a good-night kiss, Serena drew the covers over the both of them and settled in before closing her eyes for the night.

The combination of the dark room, the soft pillow under his head, and Serena's warmth snuggled up next to him was enough to start lulling Augustine to sleep. He concentrated on how soft Serena's hair was under his fingers, and how she smelled faintly of vanilla and lavender, and how her heart was almost beating in time with his. Thoughts of their first Christmas together – happiness, food, exchanging gifts - were almost enough to drive away images of electrocuted and burned Pokemon from his mind's eye as he dreamed that night. His last thought before drifting away into sleep was a wish: for him and Serena to be able to leave their worries behind; and for them to lay next to one another, as they were doing then, forever.


	14. Chapter 14

**FOURTEEN**

"Serena, we're going to a party. Could you at least pretend you're enjoying yourself?" Augustine asked, giving her hand a squeeze. He had noticed the subtle scowl on her face.

"He's making us miss Tierno's show for this," grumbled Serena. She looked ahead, seeing that the two of them were not too far away from Hotel Richissme. Christmas trees were in the windows, decorated with glimmering garlands and colorful ornaments.

"I know, and I honestly thought the party would be later in the evening . . . but he's my boss, so I'm required to go, and he wanted me to bring you along too."

Serena sighed. "Nothing like a Team Flare Christmas party to get you in the holiday spirit."

The two of them entered Hotel Richissme, finding a posted sign that directed attendees of the State Christmas Party down a hall into the Main Ballroom.

"But really, why did I have to come?" asked Serena. Up ahead in the hallway, she saw a small group of well-dressed people talking outside the entrance to the ballroom.

"Anyone who's anyone will be here. I know you try hard to live a normal life and forget that you're famous, but it's not a party for the rich and powerful unless the Champion is here." Augustine told her. "Besides, if you didn't come along I'd be bored to tears."

"Isn't Diantha supposed to be here?" Serena let go of his hand and started unbuttoning her off-white peacoat.

"I suppose . . . that reminds me. We need to make sure there's plenty of distance between her and the Governor at all times. She doesn't care for him."

"Who does, though?" Serena said. She shimmied out of her coat and draped it over her arm, then looked back up at Augustine, expecting him to react to her previous statement. Instead, he was scanning up and down her body, taking in the sight of her green satin dress, pausing for a split second as his eyes rested on the dress's sweetheart neckline and the small amount of cleavage it revealed.

"I, um, don't think I've seen this dress before," he commented, fidgeting with his bowtie and tuxedo jacket.

"It's new," said Serena idly. She noticed how his eyes darted between her face and her neckline. "I'm up here, sir!"

"Are you sure Christmas can't come early for me?"

Serena whacked him in the arm. "You're such a teenage boy sometimes."

As soon as their coats were handed to the coat checker outside the doors, Serena and Augustine entered the ballroom. The room was circular, illuminated by a large crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling in addition to the dimmed ceiling lights. Pillars were wrapped in gold and silver garlands, and Christmas trees were stationed along the walls. A jazz band was playing soft Christmas tunes to help set the mood.

Diantha, dressed in a sleek black evening gown, was the first to see Serena and Augustine. She rushed forward and hastily greeted them, holding her glass of wine out of the way as she did.

"So great to see you, my darling friends!" she said exuberantly.

"Who are you here with?" Serena asked her. She scanned the floor, looking for any sign of Teleurac.

"I came here as a group with the Elite Four – well, just the three I'm still speaking to, at least," said Diantha.

Augustine gave her a puzzled look.

"Did I not tell you about what Malva said to me? Apparently I need some work done or something so I can remain young and beautiful for my acting career – I am so tired of hearing that from people! And then I asked her what kind of rumors had been going around about Governor Teleurac, since she has a good working relationship with the man and I like to know these things. She seemed _so offended_ by my curiosity, I – I – _ugh_." Diantha gulped down some of her wine, then cleared her throat. "Anyway, come have some food and drink! It's actually quite good."

Diantha led them to a long table laden with trays of finger foods and glasses of red and white wine. Serena scanned the food in front of her, most of which was arranged in foot-high stacks, and wondered if limiting food consumption did not apply during the holidays. She and Augustine prepared themselves plates of food, grabbed drinks, and joined the crowd of people behind Diantha, making small talk with the other partygoers, which included the Gym Leaders. She posed for a selfie with Viola, and then she and Augustine posed for Alexa, who wanted a publicity photo.

"I had to get a picture of you two. Kalos's top power couple, on your first major public outing since the Le Wow incident? People will love it!" Alexa said gleefully after getting a picture that satisfied her.

Serena locked eyes with Augustine, to find he was amused as she was. "Hear that? We're Kalos's top power couple!" she informed him, giggling.

Soon, Serena realized she did not need to pretend to enjoy herself. When Korrina came around to talk to them, she and Serena got into a lively discussion about roller skating techniques and playfully made fun of Augustine for his inability to keep his balance while skating. ("You'll have to help me teach him, Korrina. He's hopeless.") Augustine got his revenge when Siebold stopped by; the two men discussed cooking and recipes, and Augustine mentioned how Serena couldn't make crepes to save her life. After laughing at the joke which came at her expense, Serena glanced over to Diantha; the older woman's laughter quickly faded into a grimace as she looked on past their little group. Serena followed her line of sight to see Malva, who was dressed in a revealing red gown and pretending to be interested in the prattling of the Lumiose Museum Curator. Malva glanced away from the curator, and her eyes met Serena's.

"I wouldn't be surprised if something _was_ up with her," Diantha suddenly leaned over to Serena and whispered in her ear. Serena didn't respond; she wanted to give Diantha some confirmation, but didn't know how to go about that or if this was even a good moment. Once she and Malva were done glaring at one another, both women turned back to their respective groups.

Valerie floated into the group next, pulling a sprig of mistletoe out of the sleeve of her velvety red furisode. "Would anyone care to partake in this Christmas tradition?" she asked, holding the mistletoe out to them. Augustine snatched it up and held it over Serena's head. He then bent down and gave her a brief kiss, using his free hand to cup her chin and tilt her head up to him. She heard the _click_ and shutter of Viola's camera. When the kiss was finished, a blushing Serena stole the mistletoe from Augustine and used it to give Valerie a light peck on the cheek.

"She wanted someone to kiss _her,_ you silly man," she said to Augustine. Valerie giggled daintily before moving on, her mistletoe in hand.

Making sure that Diantha was engrossed in conversation with Wulfric and Olympia, Serena and Augustine made their way back to the long table to grab some more food and drink. Teleurac was standing at the table, preparing a glass of wine for himself.

"Ah, Professor Sycamore! Mademoiselle Carlyle! I was wondering when I would see you two here!" Teleurac greeted them jovially. Augustine gave a polite smile, while Serena maintained a stony expression.

"This is a wonderful party, Governor," said Augustine, gesturing out to the ballroom.

"You think so? Why _merci_. I aim to pull out all the stops – in a sustainable manner, of course. All the refreshments here come from organic ingredients – no chemical treatments or genetic modifications of any sort." Teleurac had a sip of wine, and then turned to Serena. "You look absolutely _gorgeous_ tonight, Serena." He commented, his eyes glancing down at her neckline.

"Um, thank you." Serena said, uncomfortable with the words that had just come from his mouth, as well as the fact that she was in the same space as him.

"Professor, do you mind if I have a minute alone with Serena? Just to talk?"

"Of course," agreed Augustine, although he sounded and looked concerned. He turned to Serena, taking hold of her free hand. "I'll be over with the others," he told her before leaning in to kiss her cheek. He then departed to rejoin Diantha and the Gym Leaders.

When Augustine had left, Teleurac grasped Serena's shoulder. "Follow me, please," he said, leading her away from the refreshment table and over to one of the columns. Serena glanced back at the center of the room, noting how almost everyone else was in that large group, and her mind began to run rampant with ideas of what he could possibly want to discuss with her. At the same time, her stomach began twisting into knots.

"Serena, you know that we are exploring Pokemon as a source of energy for Kalos. And I know that you are not a fan of such explorations. Pokemon are killed, and that is regrettable. But I think if we tapped into Mega Evolution, we could save some lives," he said calmly, studying her face. She kept her expression neutral, hiding her loathing and her dread of what he was going to say next.

"I would like for you to submit your Charizard, Lucario, and Ampharos for testing immediately, as well as be present so you can Mega Evolve them – keep in mind that they would be in the very capable hands of Professor Sycamore, so you'd have no reason to worry for their –"

"Not a Snover's chance in hell of that happening." Serena snapped.

"I don't recall _asking_ you if you wanted to submit them."

"I don't care. You can't have them."

Teleurac sighed.

"Do you remember that you agreed to cooperate, and do _exactly_ as I told you?" he asked her threateningly.

"I remember. You threatened to kill Augustine. Go ahead – do it. Good luck finding another Mega Evolution researcher to help you with your cruel plans," Serena replied coolly, although she felt like lashing out somehow. She glanced away from him to confirm that Augustine was still amongst the group of people he had joined.

"What makes you think we're planning anything, hmm?" asked Teleurac.

"Please. If your intentions were so great, why have a facility underneath the city? Why not be public about who you really are? Why put up walls around Centrico Plaza while you build a _park?_ Why are you so scared of me?"

"I'm not scared of you. I have Team Flare, the Kalosian Guard, and the police force at my disposal. You are one Pokemon Trainer – a remarkably talented one, I'll admit – but you are still only one. I have no reason to fear you."

"And yet I'm under constant surveillance and my boyfriend wears a wire, to ensure _his _silence . . . these 'foreign ears' that have heard rumors about you, who are they? President Oria in Unova? Prime Minister Bexx of Johto? Doesn't matter; I can just give them all Christmas Holo Caster calls from inside Centrico Plaza. They'd enjoy seeing the park you're building there." Serena said, shrugging dramatically but speaking as if she was telling him her plans to do something mundane.

"Don't you DARE!" Teleurac raged, his hand flying up and swinging swiftly across her face. His hand struck, letting out a loud clapping sound and turning her head to the side. Past the ringing in her ears from the sound of the slap, she heard the other partygoers quiet down after an initial wave of surprised gasps.

Holding her hand to where her face was stinging in pain, Serena turned her head back to look at him with contempt. "Or what, you'll slap me again?"

"No, but you'll have to live with the consequences. President Oria will likely declare war to try and oust me if she suspects anything else is afoot. Would you really want to subject the good people and Pokemon of Kalos to that?"

Serena did not respond.

"What's going on here?" Augustine walked briskly to Serena's side, moving her hand from her face so he could see the bright red handprint on her cheek.

"A, erm, brief lapse of judgment on my part, I'm afraid," Teleurac said quickly, glancing at Alexa and Viola. Both sisters were watching the Governor, and they had their cameras in hand and ready to go at a moment's notice. He cleared his throat.

"Now, if you two will excuse me." He turned his back to the pair of them and strode out of the ballroom. Once he had rounded the corner into the hallway and was out of sight, Serena raised herself up so that her lips were an inch from Augustine's ear.

"I threatened to tell people the truth."

"You're lucky all he did was slap you, then," said Augustine.

Now that Teleurac had departed, it did not take long for Alexa and Viola to descend upon Serena, followed by several other partygoers. Everybody wanted to know why Teleurac had just slapped her, and where he had gone. Malva stood off to the side of that group, watching Serena with a fiery glare.

"Here's the deal," Serena spoke loudly, holding up her glass of wine to get everyone's attention. "These awful accusations against the Governor are going around. We all know that. I'd heard someone say something about Team Flare, and I just asked him if that rumor in particular bothered him the most."

Several partygoers gasped softly. Ramos and Wulfric whispered amongst themselves. Malva pursed her lips.

"I mean, he could have just said no. He didn't _have_ to slap me. And if you ask me, his reaction to my question was rather damning, don't you think?" She turned to Alexa. "I think people will love that more than a picture of Augustine and me. Is there still a handprint on my face? Get a picture of it, will you?"

"Oh no, Alexa. You don't want to publish a story about Governor Teleurac physically assaulting our darling Champion, do you?" Malva then stepped into the fold, holding her open palm out to Alexa.

"You're a journalist too, Malva. You understand our duty is to the public, to keep them informed on everything that is –" Alexa objected, tightening her grip on her camera.

"But this is Christmas! A joyous time to celebrate love and peace. There is no need for you to run the story about this incident. _None at all._"

Alexa sighed. "I liked you better before you became a government official."

Malva smirked in self-satisfaction, then turned to face Serena.

"I believe you've had too much to drink tonight, Serena," she said coolly. "Perhaps you should go home and rest."

"I feel fine, thank you," Serena retorted. She felt Augustine draw closer to her, and his hand resting on her shoulder.

"But . . . I do think I've had enough of this party," she added before gulping down the rest of her wine. She looked up at Augustine, who nodded at her to indicate he was ready to leave as well.

* * *

><p>Once they had exited Hotel Richissme, Serena received a call from Calem, who was inviting her and Augustine to the after-party celebrating Tierno's first paid show. Calem was also itching for a battle, so Serena and Augustine decided to make a quick detour to her apartment first.<p>

"I wonder what Teleurac's going to say to the other partygoers," Serena wondered as she made her way into her bedroom, where she had last left her Pokeball belt on the nightstand.

"About what?" Augustine asked as he followed her.

"The slapping incident, of course," she said, looking down at the floor and noticing that her rug was crooked and one of the corners had been folded back haphazardly on top of the rug. She then looked up to her nightstand, where she had though she had left her belt, to see that it was not there.

"Hmm, that's odd. I thought I had left them there," mused Serena. Augustine perched himself on the edge of the bed and watched as she scoured every inch, nook, and cranny of her bedroom. She dashed back into the living room, overturning couch cushions and sending pillows flying around the room, checking under tables and chairs and her entertainment center, growing more frantic by the minute. In the kitchen, the pantry door had been left slightly ajar, showing Serena that her new package of cookies had been opened and were missing a few of its contents.

She froze on the spot, feeling her heart race and her insides tense up. Her Pokeball belt – and by extension her Pokemon – was nowhere to be found.

"Serena?" Augustine called. He made his way into the kitchen, standing next to the dining table and watching her with concern. She was standing by the slightly opened pantry, a hand resting on the door; she brought her eyes to meet his gaze.

"I can't find them," she choked, feeling like tears could start falling that instant.

"And you've looked everywhere? Do you want me to double check?"

"Yes! Everywhere! I'm such a bad Trainer, I should have taken them to the party with me, so at least I could have known where they were at all times." Serena's hand slid off the pantry door, and she leaned back against it, folding her arms across her chest.

"Of course, I bet Teleurac would have wanted me to hand them over right then and there – oh . . . _Oh._" It dawned on her.

"_That bastard._"


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** Hi everyone! Thanks for your continued support!

I regret to inform you that there will be no updates next week, because I'll be out of town for Spring Break. For now, I leave you all with this ungodly long chapter. See you next week!

* * *

><p><strong>FIFTEEN<strong>

"Give me your Holo Caster. It's got his number in it." Serena demanded of Augustine, walking towards him and thrusting her open palm outwards. Once he had placed the device in her hands, she dialed up Teleurac and waited for a response.

"Serena, you have no proof it was him," Augustine pointed out.

"We _literally_ had this conversation before he slapped me," snapped Serena. Immediately after she finished speaking, Teleurac's holographic image popped up.

_"Professor! How can I – oh. You."_ Teleurac's demeanor fell when he saw Serena.

"Where are they?" Serena questioned him, her voice shaking with indignation.

_"I'm sorry, Serena, but who is 'they?'"_

"My Pokemon! Someone came into my home and stole them! One of yours probably, and they ate my cookies!"

_"Ah, your Pokemon are missing . . . unfortunate that I had to order their seizure, isn't it? If only you had peacefully agreed to turn them over, then maybe your cookies would have not been touched."_

Serena growled, and wished she could grab him through the Holo Caster and give him a good throttle.

_"Don't worry, Serena. You'll be used as a riveting cautionary tale, warning other Pokemon Trainers of the dangers of noncompliance. Find some comfort in knowing that significantly less Pokemon will be taken from their Trainers, so nobody will have to suffer the same as you . . . also, if you act out in any way, you will be arrested, and I would hate for you to have to spend Christmas in prison."_

Teleurac hung up. Serena slammed Augustine's Holo Caster down on the table before darting back into her bedroom and tearing into her closet. Augustine followed her; when he arrived to the doorway, he covered his eyes, for she had removed her dress and thrown it on her bed.

"What are you doing?" he asked, although it sounded to Serena like he already knew the answer.

Serena threw on a T-shirt, followed by jeans and her sturdiest running shoes. She was ready to tell him exactly what she was going to do, but at the same time she knew that he wouldn't be the only person who found out about it.

"You're going to go search for your Pokemon, aren't you?" Augustine continued, his tone conflicted.

"I'm dressed now. You can look." Serena said briskly as she slipped into a jacket.

"Serena, look . . . I hate that Teleurac's done this. I really do. But you heard him. He'll arrest you if you try to steal them back." Augustine said urgently after his hand slid off his eyes.

"But if I succeed, he won't be able to catch me," said Serena with brash confidence. She went over to her nightstand and grabbed a ponytail holder, using it to tie her hair back in a low ponytail.

"And if you don't succeed?. . . Serena, has it occurred to you that you might not win this one?"

She stared at him, trying to figure out what exactly he was thinking. To her, it was a valid point for him to be worried that she would be caught and arrested, but did he want her to get her Pokemon back or not?

"How about this: when I go back to work after my vacation, I'll talk to him. I'll see if I can get them back for you. They may not even be fit for testing."

"A lot can happen to them between now and next week, Augustine," Serena spat. "I need them back _now. _That's the only way I'll know they're safe." She imagined her Pokemon hooked up to those energy extractor machines, being electrocuted and injured as the life was sucked out of them. The thought of it made her want to cry and breathe a fire hotter than Charizard could ever conjure. It also occurred to her that she did not have the slightest idea of where to begin.

She walked briskly to the doorway, intending to leave, but Augustine blocked her path.

"And what's going to keep _you_ safe, Serena?" he said, looking down at her as if that would be the last time he ever saw her.

"You could come with me," she offered.

Augustine sighed. "I can't do that."

"Why not?" she blurted out. He of all people should be helping her, she thought bitterly. Augustine pointed to his chest, at the approximate spot where the microphone was attached, and she nodded in resentful comprehension.

"That's it, then . . . you're scared of him, that he'll find out you're helping me."

"If I go too, I could put you in jeopardy. He'd know where we are and what we're doing."

Serena groaned. How hard was it to just rip the stupid thing off and break it?

"_Chérie,"_ said Augustine soothingly as he took her face in his hands, "Let's not do anything rash right now. We should wait until you've calmed down, and then decide how to handle this. I promise you that I will not allow your Pokemon to be subject to anything I would not want my own to experience, just . . . _please._ Stay here."

"No." Serena pushed herself away from Augustine and walked past him into the living room. She ran to the front door, grabbing her keys off the coffee table on the way. Her hand moved to unlock the door, and Augustine called out to her again.

"Serena, wait."

Rolling her eyes, she turned to see him shed his tuxedo jacket and start unbuttoning his shirt. Her gaze explored the bared area of his torso for a split second, before she saw the wire laying against his skin, sticking out like a crack in finely sculpted marble. Once his shirt was open, he reached to the back of his pants and pulled off the microphone's battery pack, then ripped off the tape that secured the microphone in place. He dropped it all on the floor before slamming his heel into the battery pack, breaking it and sending shards of black plastic sliding along the floor.

Her lips curved into a small smile.

"I have an idea of where we should check first," said Augustine as he buttoned his shirt back up.

* * *

><p>"They would not be kept here," a nonplussed Serena said as she and Augustine exited the elevator and walked into his office at Sycamore Pokemon Laboratories.<p>

"No, they're not. You're right." Augustine opened a cabinet and pulled out one of his indigo shirts and a pair of dark jeans. He glanced at Serena, then cleared his throat loudly. Picking up on the cue, Serena turned his back to him.

"It's funny how we were planning on doing it for the first time tomorrow but we still won't watch each other change clothes," she commented, trying to focus on the task at hand and not let her mind wander in a direction that involved Augustine in various states of undress.

"Why ruin the surprise?" responded Augustine cheekily. "Anyway, we're here because I wanted to wear something a little more comfortable, and the Abra we use to Teleport into the Team Flare facility are housed here as well."

"They've been here this whole time?"

_"Oui. _I have one in my desk, actually . . . you can look now."

Serena turned back around, in time to watch Augustine secure his Pokeball belt around himself, counting to see that all four of his Pokemon were present. He then reached back into the cabinet and grabbed a fifth Pokeball, pressed the catch, and sent out an Abra.

"Anything else you've been hiding from me?" Serena questioned as she observed the Abra, who was levitating itself over the desk.

Augustine shook his head. "Only what you're about to see. But before we go, Serena, I want you to promise me something: if at any time we're in danger and there's an opportunity for you to escape, I want you to take it. Don't worry about me, because I'll have my Pokemon. Save yourself."

Although the idea of possibly leaving him behind with Team Flare made her stomach drop, Serena nodded. "I promise," she said, smiling weakly.

She tentatively approached the Abra, looking straight at its closed eyelids as if she was actually making eye contact with the sleeping Pokemon. It hit her that she had never Teleported anywhere before.

"Uh . . . Abra, use Teleport."

Abra did not respond.

"Abra, Teleport her." Augustine intervened. "Flying Litwick."

She shot him a puzzled look, but before she could ask him what exactly he meant by "Flying Litwick," Abra had generated a purple-and-gold aura and extended it to envelop Serena. Soon, the lab and Augustine faded out of view, and she felt as if her body was being whirled around in a circle, surrounded by the ethereal light of Abra's aura, and compressed in on itself. When the world rematerialized again, she found herself standing in a dark space, the aura emanated by Abra giving off barely enough light to show her the silhouette of a nearby chair.

Abra Teleported away, leaving Serena in the dark. She heard the low hum of a running computer, and something beeping, but could not discern anything else in the dark. Her head felt light, and she felt like the world was slowly rocking back and forth around her in her wooziness.

A minute after Abra left, it reappeared, this time carrying Augustine with it. "Use Flash," he commanded; Abra radiated a soft, bright light. Flash revealed that there was indeed a computer on a desk and a chair, along with some papers posted to a bulletin board and a series of lockers. There was one solid door, and there was no telling where it led.

"You never told me Teleporting was so rough," Serena complained, reaching a hand out to him in hopes of getting some support.

"It takes getting used to." Augustine grabbed her outstretched hand and drew her closer to him.

"So, what's 'Flying Litwick?'" she asked him, leaning her head into his shoulder.

He chuckled. "It's like a code. Abra won't teleport unless she hears someone regarded as 'authorized personnel' say it."

"Huh," Serena stood up straight. "So we're here?"

"If by 'here' you mean the super-secret underground facility, then yes," said Augustine as he led her to the door. He opened it and ushered her out. Abra, feeling that its work was done, Teleported away.

"Where do you want to start looking?" asked Serena. She found herself in a hallway very similar to the one she had previously encountered in the facility, only it was lined with more doors and there was an upward-leading staircase at the end of it.

Augustine sent out Garchomp. Before he could answer, Serena had made her way to another door and opened it. Inside, she found stacks of cardboard boxes of various sizes, all taped shut. The boxes were labeled with the names of Pokemon, and she didn't recognize the names of any of hers. After seeing a dark red and brown stain on the side of one box labeled "Pancham," she jumped out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Pathetic excuses for human beings, that's what they are," she hissed, shaking her trembling head as she went to the next door. Behind her, she heard Augustine rattle a doorknob, followed by the swipe of Garchomp's arm and the sound of wood crash onto the ground. The next room she checked was full of more cardboard boxes, labeled with the names of more Pokemon that weren't hers, as were the next two rooms she checked. The first thing she resolved to do once she got her Pokemon back was to have Charizard burn the whole place down.

"In here!" she heard Augustine shout. Serena ran into the room whose door was laying in pieces on the ground. Inside, she found Augustine examining models of towers, all lined up together on a table. Garchomp stood nearby, clawed arms bared and standing vigilant.

"You really think they'd keep my Pokemon in a random locked room? We should be looking for, like, a grand pedestal or something that's guarded by a laser security system and some Houndoom," she said, curious as to what he was doing.

"Then go look for your grand pedestal. I, on the other hand, have been trying to get into this room for weeks," Augustine told her. Upon closer inspection, Serena noticed that the model towers had long, slender cannons on the top of them, and a map of the Six Regions was lying on the table.

"I think I see why this room is for authorized personnel only," he added glibly, running a finger over the top of one of the model towers.

"You wouldn't see it until you believed it, huh, Professor?"

Serena and Augustine turned to the doorway to see a male Team Flare Admin. The Admin had his Holo Caster in one hand and a Pokeball in another.

"I heard a something break, so I came to investigate. It's so nice of you to join me tonight, Professor. Working Christmas Eve is the pits and I'm glad you're keeping me company . . . and look, you brought your girlfriend! The boss told me to keep an eye out for her!" The Admin released a Scrafty from his Pokeball.

"I suppose you're going to try and arrest me now, aren't you?" Serena asked the Admin, trying to sound intimidating.

"That's right . . . and how are you going to stop me?" smirked the Admin. He pointed at Augustine's Garchomp. "Scrafty, use High Jump Kick on that beast."

Serena leaped out of the way as Scrafty charged towards Garchomp. Scrafty jumped high into the air, and as it came back down it swung out a leg that came crashing down on Garchomp's head. After Scrafty backed off, Garchomp's head was still bowed as he recuperated from the hit.

Once he got over the initial shock of what happened, Augustine glanced over to Serena, who gave him a determined nod, communicating her confidence in him. He waited for Garchomp to straighten up before issuing a command.

"Dragon Claw!"

Garchomp stepped forward and swiped his arm at Scrafty, striking his opponent with enough force to send it falling onto its back. Scrafty soon got back up, displaying a long dark gash across its body from where Garchomp had struck.

As Augustine and the Admin did battle, Serena sidled a wall, waiting to see if the Admin would step out of the doorway or otherwise create an opening for her. That opening came when Garchomp swung another Dragon Claw at Scrafty, with the Dragon-type being in close enough proximity to the doorway that the Admin had to take a step back to avoid being hit. The attack fainted Scrafty, and Serena sprinted out of the room and into the hall.

"I was going easy on you!" the Admin snarled as he took Scrafty back into its Pokeball. "But I suggest you both run for it, because the Governor will be here very soon once I call him!" He waved his Holo Caster at the pair of them before taking off.

"That doesn't leave us much time," Augustine told Serena as he recalled Garchomp. He glanced down at the floor, looking at the models of the towers that had been smashed during the fight, then ran to meet Serena. She took his hand and led him up the staircase at the end of the hall, not knowing where it led but desperate to keep moving.

The two of them wound up in an open area with stone walls and floors; in the center was a circular chamber with a metal frame and glass panels that extended up through a hole in the ceiling. Aside from the chamber, the only contents of the room were various metal construction materials and electric wiring. A few light fixtures provided illumination for the area.

It was unlikely that her Pokemon were in here, but Serena jogged up to the circular chamber, peered inside to see some loose bits of metal and wires, then looked up to see the inside of Prism Tower looming above, visible through the hole cut in the ground.

"What do you see?" Augustine asked as he joined her side.

"A way out of here, maybe," said Serena. She grabbed a nearby metal rod off the ground and swung it with all her might at one of the glass panels, breaking the panel and sending glass shrapnel flying forward into the chamber. Augustine looked up, saw Prism Tower, and sent out his Charizard. He climbed onto his Pokemon's back and pulled Serena on after him; Charizard then flew into the chamber and up to the surface, touching down next to the opening in the ground.

When she disembarked from his Charizard, Serena surveyed the walled-up Centrico Plaza. Not much had changed yet, although there were five lines of the boxy energy extractor machines surrounding the Tower, arranged like the five major avenues of the city. Next to each machine was an empty cage, and each cage was connected via wiring to another cage in the same line, and the cages closest to the Tower had yet to be connected to anything else.

"You don't think . . . ?!" she turned to Augustine, seeing the same look of horror on his face that she was wearing.

Augustine gulped. "Should I have my Pokemon destroy all of this?"

"Not yet. Give me your Holo Caster. I have a call to make." Serena now thought it unlikely that she would find her Pokemon before Teleurac found her, but at least she had found this. That surely counted for something.

Her first instinct was to call President Oria in Unova, but she didn't know Oria's number, it wasn't programmed in Augustine's Holo Caster, and looking it up would take more time than they had. Instead, when Augustine handed the device to her, she dialed up Alexa.

_"Serena, what is it?"_ Alexa asked.

"Check this out. I'm in Centrico Plaza right now." Serena said hastily as she turned the Holo Caster to show Alexa the base of Prism Tower. "The government's building something in here. I don't know what yet, but it definitely isn't a park." She rotated to show the energy extractors and cages. Right then, she noticed something bright red stamped onto the corner of the nearest extractor. When she looked closer, she saw it was the Team Flare insignia.

"And this is my favorite right here," said Serena as she positioned the Holo Caster to give Alexa a better view of the insignia.

"_Wait, what? _Mon Dieu!"Alexa gasped, her eyes wide with shock. _"Serena, why are you showing me this?"_

"Make sure this footage is seen by as many people as possible. Post it on the internet, hack into whichever channel's playing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Stantler right now, I don't care. Just get it out there, and as fast as you can. Team Flare _has_ returned to Kalos, and Governor Teleurac is their leader. I don't know what any of this is, but I aim to find out." She ended the call and tossed the Holo Caster back to Augustine.

"You and her will be cellmates," he said darkly.

Her mouth gaped open slightly as guilt began to sting her. What if Alexa didn't have the chance to do anything with that Holo footage before she was censored or arrested? What would the authorities do to her?

"Come on. My Pokemon aren't up here," she said flatly as she marched back to the opening in the ground. She stopped after only a few steps, for Teleurac was making his ascent on the back of his Talonflame.

"Leaving so soon?" he asked as he hopped off Talonflame and stood a few yards from Serena.

"Not quite yet. I still haven't found my Pokemon." Serena told him.

"And you really think they'd be here, in this facility? . . . it hardly matters, though. I told you that you would be arrested for acting out, and so I am now making good on that. Charges, I think, begin with breaking into and entering a restricted area – add slander as well, and sedition, destruction of government property too." Teleurac smirked.

Serena glanced over to Augustine and gave him a short nod. He nodded back in a similar manner. There was no way she would go quietly.

"Fine, you can arrest me. But you'll have to catch me first." She sprinted to the nearest wall, hoping that her speed combined with her weight could provide enough force to knock a portion of it down. When she checked to see if Augustine was catching up, she was instead met with the sight of Teleurac's Talonflame, flying her way in pursuit. Talonflame made its way over her head, then shot out a Flamethrower onto the ground, separating her from the wall.

She skidded to a halt a few feet away from the fire, close enough to feel its intense heat. From there, she backed away and started running to another section of wall. Talonflame spewed yet another Flamethrower to veer her off course and drive her back to the middle of the plaza. She saw Augustine running towards her, his hand throwing a Pokeball and letting out his Blastoise. At his command, Blastoise hit Talonflame with a Hydro Pump, knocking the airborne Pokemon into the ceiling and then falling to the ground.

Blastoise got to work putting out the fires made by Talonflame, and Serena closed the distance between herself and Augustine.

"Remember what you promised to do before we came here?" he whispered, looking to see Teleurac recall his fainted Talonflame.

"Yeah, but I don't have an opportunity yet," Serena reminded him.

"I'll create one. Again, don't worry about me." Augustine quickly kissed her.

The kiss was interrupted by the sound of a crackling Thunderbolt shooting through the air, striking Blastoise in the belly. Serena's eyes widened when she saw the source of the Thunderbolt was a Luxray, with Teleurac standing behind it.

"I hate to interrupt the little moment the two of you are having – oh wait. No I don't!" Teleurac stated exuberantly.

Blastoise had survived the Thunderbolt, if only barely. The large Water-type showed signs of electrical burns on its chest and stomach areas, and it panted in fatigue.

"Use Skull Bash!"

As Augustine left her side to focus on the battle, Serena turned her attention to a nearby cage and energy extractor. She opened the side panel of the machine and began pulling out its insides: wires, tubes, microchips, and a sealed flask containing some swirling green vapor. Not knowing what the vapor was, she intended to set it down gently and move on, but she saw Blastoise come her way and she jumped back to avoid being hit. Blastoise crashed into the glass cage next to the machine, having been struck by another Thunderbolt; in her haste to move, Serena dropped the flask on the ground, shattering it and letting the green vapor inside dissipate into the air.

Blastoise was now fainted, lying unconscious in a bed of shattered glass and bent metal. Augustine recalled Blastoise and sent out Garchomp next to deal with Luxray. Serena walked backwards towards the next machine in line, watching as Garchomp stomped his foot onto the ground and triggered an Earthquake. She wobbled as the ground shook, reaching to stabilize herself on the cage. Once the Earthquake stopped, she opened and ripped out everything inside that energy extractor, finding that the flask inside was empty; she smashed it nonetheless. For added measure, she stomped as hard as she could on everything she took out, breaking some tubes and microchips.

After repeating the process on the next machine in the line, she looked back to check on the battle. Garchomp had just fallen, being hit by an Ice Beam from Teleurac's Lapras. Augustine sent out his Venusaur next.

"What are you thinking?!" she hollered at Augustine, wondering if it occurred to him to have Garchomp use Stone Edge while that Pokemon was still active in the battle.

"I'm doing the best I can here!" Augustine retorted, clearly frustrated with how the battle was not favoring him.

Feeling certain that Augustine would lose the battle, Serena kept going, ripping out the insides of energy extractors and smashing their contents under her heel. For good measure, she flipped them over, although they were still heavy even when emptied out. Meanwhile, two Ice Beams from Lapras were enough to faint Venusaur, and Augustine sent out his last Pokemon, Charizard. Augustine observed what Serena was doing; instead of directing Charizard to attack Lapras, he had his Pokemon fly at the line of energy extractors and cages closest to him. As he flew, Charizard swung his tail to break all objects in his way, dodging Hydro Pumps from Lapras as he went. When an opportunity arose, Charizard shot a Flamethrower at Lapras, only to have it do minimal damage. Lapras returned with another Hydro Pump, hitting Charizard in the face and knocking him into the ground. Charizard staggered to his feet and looked at Augustine, awaiting direction.

"Try and knock a wall down," Augustine asked his Pokemon, pointing at the walls that separated the plaza from the rest of Lumiose. Charizard nodded and resumed flight, heading to the walls.

"Stop it, Lapras!" Teleurac commanded his Pokemon. "I do admire your attempt to escape, Augustine, but it won't work."

"I'm not the one I want to escape," Augustine informed him boldly. He turned to see Serena running back to him. When she was by his side again, he leaned in and whispered "Get ready to run."

_Crash!_ Charizard collided with the wall, but was not successful in breaking it down. Lapras fired a Water Pulse, and the attack fainted Charizard.

"Or maybe I shouldn't," said Serena as Augustine recalled Charizard. Augustine sighed as he clipped Charizard's Pokeball back onto his belt, and he hung his head in resignation.

Teleurac laughed menacingly. "Good try, Professor. Good try! And Serena, you will be reimbursing me for the damage you just caused. In the meantime, I believe there is a prison cell with your name on it."

Serena had a cheeky comeback for him, but she forgot it the moment something crashed through the wall around the plaza. A Rhyhorn had smashed through, its Trainer not too far behind and accompanied by others. She heard someone shout "She was right! This doesn't look like a park at all!"

A dozen people poured through the hole in the wall, into the plaza. Those without Pokemon took out video cameras and Holo Casters to record their own footage of what they saw. Trainers released their Pokemon to finish breaking the rest of the machines and cages, while police officers came in as well in order to stop them. Team Flare grunts and Admins emerged from the opening in the ground under Prism Tower to come to the aid of the police officers.

She grabbed Augustine's wrist and tugged him along, dodging attacks launched by Pokemon and attempts by police and Flare members to grab her. However, the same Admin they had encountered earlier clutched onto Augustine's arm and pulled him back towards him; Serena tried to tug him away with all her might, but even with Augustine's help, the Admin succeeded in yanking the Professor out of Serena's grip. Serena was sent stumbling backwards, leaving enough space between her and the two men for some Trainers to charge through.

"Get out of here!" Augustine bellowed at her.

Serena glanced around at the chaos surrounding her, then back towards Augustine, only to see that Admin drag him away back to where Teleurac was standing while he flailed about helplessly. She would have ignored him, ran to help him if she had her Pokemon, but not even then could she hope to weather the crossfires of attacks flying back and forth in the heated battles that were happening: Solarbeams, Focus Blasts, Thunders, Blizzards, all being thrown every which way. One Team Flare Admin directed her Manectric to shoot a Thunder Wave in Serena's direction; she leaped out of the way just in time, and the attack hit a nearby Tauros instead.

She looked back to the base of Prism Tower. That Admin, Augustine, and Teleurac were nowhere to be found. She felt powerless to help, presently being without Pokemon – but when she saw a Gastly launch a Shadow Ball at its opponent, she remembered that she had others.

Serena ran, going as fast as her legs could carry her, evading stray attacks and attempts by other Flare members and police officers to accost her, ears filled with yet numb to the roars and shouts of the bedlam around her, until she had jumped out of the hole in the wall and onto Hibernal Avenue and ran through a full-blown riot happening on the street. More battles between civilian Trainers, police, and Flare members were occurring, windows of stores were smashed in, and the harsh glow of a fire came from the inside of Restaurant Le Wow. She got herself lost in a group of people for a bit, covering her ears to protect them from their angry shouts of protest against Teleurac and his administration. That group dissipated once a squad of Houndoom appeared, pouncing on people and digging their sharp fangs into their bodies. One Houndoom lunged at Serena, but she ducked down and let it jump over her head, and she resumed her sprint.

The Pokemon Center on North Boulevard had a mass of people crowding around the entrance, trying to push themselves inside. Many of the people carried injured Pokemon in their arms, and many were injured themselves. That crowd was the only thing between Serena and the PC Box inside. Before she got the chance to force her way through, more police officers arrived and forced everyone inside the Pokemon Center, telling them that for their own safety, nobody was to enter or leave without permission. One officer called someone to confirm that the Pokemon Centers at South Boulevard and Magenta Plaza had also been secured. Knowing that heading in there would be a very easy way to get caught soon, Serena ran off down North Boulevard, through more riots and battles and Houndoom attacking people and burning buildings.

In front of the gate to Route 14, a Double Battle was taking place between two civilian Trainers and two Team Flare Admins. Serena slowed to a halt, crouching behind a Gogoat shuttle stop and breathing heavily as her lungs and legs cried out in exhaustion. If she could get out of the city, she could make it to Laverre City, to their Pokemon Center – the only problem was the battle, with one Admin's Houndoom continuously hurling Fire Blasts and one Trainer's Pupitar emitting Dark Pulses.

Visions of Augustine, handcuffed and confined to a small prison cell, came to her mind. She also thought of her main team of five Pokemon, and whether they were locked up in their Pokeballs somewhere or if life was already being drained from them. There was no saving any of them if she remained cowering at this shuttle stop, and yet crossing through a Pokemon Battle contained its own set of risks. Taking a deep breath, Serena rose to her feet, then dashed towards the gate to Route 14, right as the Admin's Houndoom spewed another Fire Blast.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** Guess what? I'm back from Spring Break!

* * *

><p><strong>SIXTEEN<strong>

Augustine was taken to a room he had never seen before down in the facility. It was cramped, with computers, television monitors, telephones, and other communication equipment lining the walls. He was handcuffed to a wooden chair in the middle of the room, facing Teleurac and one such monitor.

"Lumiose is often called the City of Light . . . it's a very fitting description tonight, don't you think?" Teleurac looked upon the screen in front of him, which showed an aerial view of Lumiose City. The glows of fires could be seen in various places, smoke rose from the streets, and Flying-type Pokemon swooped in and out of view.

"I've been informed that Alexa successfully broadcasted Serena's little message to her. So you can thank them for this mess," added Teleurac, visibly annoyed by what had happened earlier.

Augustine did not respond. He locked his eyes on the monitor, his gaze unfocused so that the scene of the city depicted there were only blurs of sinister orange flames contrasted by abyssal shadows to him. Serena was out there, probably trying to find her way back into this place; for all he knew, she was finding ways to contribute to the riot even without her Pokemon.

"Believe me, Professor. If I hear anything about dear Serena's whereabouts, you'll be the first to know."

Teleurac's Holo Caster beeped; Chief Renshaw had called.

"How are things out there?" he asked her.

_"Eventful. There was a group of teenagers looting Richissme and setting their Pokemon on anybody who got close, and then we sent out the Emolga squad to paralyze them all. Made arresting them easier – we fainted and confiscated all their Pokemon too."_ Renshaw recounted.

"Good. I want the Pokemon of all detained persons to be brought here as soon as possible. Also . . . keep your eyes peeled for Serena Carlyle, would you? She's dying to be reunited with her darling Pokemon."

_"Got it, sir. Anyway, I called you because we finally apprehended Alexa Papille, the one responsible for broadcasting the footage exposing Centrico Plaza. She's currently being held at City Hall . . . what would you like to be done with her?"_

"Make sure the rioters keep their grubby hands off her. She may either be their next hero or their next victim. And don't hurt her, either. Keep her there until I arrive, then we'll have a little chat."

"_Yes, sir."_ Renshaw ended the call.

Teleurac stuck his Holo Caster back in his pocket, then turned to Augustine. "See? No reason to fear. I have people looking for her as we speak . . . what's wrong, Professor? You've been rather quiet since I cuffed you to that chair."

"I have nothing to say to you," said Augustine, his voice low.

"That's not necessarily true. You could start by saying 'I'm sorry, Governor, for betraying you and Kalos because I thought my boneheaded actions would help me get into my girlfriend's pants sooner.'"

"See, _that's_ not necessarily true," retorted Augustine. "I'm not sorry. I did what I thought was right after trying to talk her into waiting failed."

"And you had your _derriere_ handed to you in a battle, in front of your darling Champion no less," sneered Teleurac.

"She has mispronounced scientific terms in front of me. My pride is not wounded." Augustine shrugged.

Teleurac narrowed his eyes, looking upon Augustine's face with a scheming scrutiny.

"Are you going to send me to prison, Governor?" asked Augustine.

"_Non_, _je ne pense pas,_" said Teleurac, running a hand over the top of his bald head. "Unfortunately, I need you. So . . . your leash will be much tighter from now on."

A _boom_ was heard in the distance, followed by the roars and cries of Pokemon.

"Looks like they've broken through one of our little barricades," noted Teleurac. "I doubt they'll get far, though. Ah, Professor! Did I ever thank you for what you have done for my Aggron?" The Governor gazed down at the Mega Ring on his finger.

"No, but being thanked for allowing you to steal one of my Mega Stones is a first," said Augustine.

Teleurac shook his head, then gazed at the closed door. The Pokemon outside roared again, and the room shook as one of them crashed into something. "Unbelievable. It's been three years, and people still hate us. They've evidently not forgotten, and a short video was all it took for them to go ballistic . . . I have quite the mess to clean up."

"Were you involved in Team Flare three years ago?" inquired Augustine.

"I was," replied Teleurac.

"Then you should know why people still hate you so much. You tried to destroy Kalos back then . . . and I saw the plans to build those cannon towers. Are you going to try to destroy Kalos again?" Augustine continued, his tone accusing and haunted.

"I'm trying to save Kalos!" Teleurac snapped, gesturing harshly towards the door. "The land itself, its people, and its Pokemon. Do you really think I wanted this? Violence, fear, hatred? No! All of that has no place in a peaceful, beautiful world."

Augustine shifted slightly in his chair. The Governor's words sounded too familiar for comfort.

The ground trembled slightly, and Teleurac dialed into his Holo Caster. "What's going on out there?"

_"We got them, sir."_ The image of a female Flare Admin spoke. _"Everyone who tried to get into the facility has been apprehended and are now being hauled off to jail. Their Pokemon have been taken as well."_

"Good! How is Aggron doing?" a satisfied Teleurac responded.

_"Aggron is still going strong. Mega Evolution gave it a huge advantage, I think."_

Teleurac nodded, his eyes glinting with self-assured pride. "I will be out shortly to retrieve my Pokemon. In the meantime, find someone with a Steel-type to fix that hole in the wall . . . . Also, contact police forces in the surrounding cities: Santalune, Camphrier, Coumarine, Laverre, and Dendemille. Have guards outside the Pokemon Centers in those towns at all times. And call Cassius. Have him hack into Serena Carlyle's PC Box, withdraw all Pokemon she has stored away, and hand them over to us."

_"Yes, sir."_

"Finally, nobody enters or leaves Lumiose City until further notice. Anyone who attempts to Fly in will be arrested and their Pokemon confiscated. When rioting dies down, check to see if any corpses have long blonde hair and heads too big for their shoulders."

_"Erm . . . yes, sir."_

When the call ended, Teleurac saw that all the color had drained from Augustine's face.

"Relax, Professor. I was only joking about the corpses. She's no good to me dead . . . sadly, I need her too."

"She won't do anything for you willingly," Augustine reminded him, wishing that Serena would be much quicker than Cassius and the police were.

"It doesn't matter whether or not she's willing. I have everything I need to easily bait her into attempting to come back." Teleurac said smugly, gesturing to the captive Professor.

"In the meantime, I expect you to resume work at the end of your vacation. I think a fitting punishment for this insubordination is to keep you on board, with every move, thought, and word of yours carefully monitored." Teleurac's Holo Caster beeped again.

_"Sir, a whole block on Vernal Avenue was knocked down by some rampaging Rhyhorn, including your favorite café and the Printemparre Apartment building."_ The Flare grunt who had called reported.

Augustine bit his lip. His apartment was in the Printemparre.

"Then neutralize the Rhyhorn, find their Trainers, and stop any looters. And don't bother me again unless it's about Serena Carlyle!" Teleurac hung up, then looked back at Augustine. "Looks like you're without a home. Good thing my penthouse has a guest bedroom."

"I'd rather live on the streets," spat Augustine.

"But if I allowed you to do that, I would not be a very gracious employer or Governor, now would I? Stray Skiddo would make lousy informants, anyway."

Augustine sighed.

"And the other part of your punishment will be to make you an official member of Team Flare. This hatred from the people you speak of? I want you to feel it."

Instead of feeling outraged or saddened, numbness came across Augustine, as if the events of that night were so much that nothing else could really get to him. All that was likely to change was the uniform he wore, trading in his lab coat for red and black attire, since he had already been doing their dirty work for the last two months.

A crooked smile formed on Teleurac's face. "Oh, Augustine, you are finally one of us, among the most powerful and stylish people in Kalos. If only Lysandre were here to see this . . . ."

If those words were a knife, they could have stabbed Augustine in the gut. He thought of his old friend, whose remains were still crushed beneath the rubble under Geosenge. Lysandre had indeed wanted Augustine to join him in the beautiful new world he envisioned, to become his right-hand man in the formation of that world. Augustine had refused, though, when he learned exactly what Lysandre was aiming to do. For Teleurac to act like he succeeded where Lysandre had failed, to be so casual about the man whom Augustine had loved like a brother yet failed to help . . . it renewed a sense of contempt and guilt in him.

Teleurac's Holo Caster beeped yet again.

"I swear, these new recruits," he muttered as he answered the call. It was a police officer. "Yes? . . . erm, who are you?"

"_I am the captain of the Laverre City Police Department, Governor. As guards positioned themselves outside the Pokemon Center, Serena Carlyle began to approach. She saw the guards and ran towards Route 14, and we have a unit in pursuit."_

"Finally, some good news," said Teleurac, side-eyeing Augustine. "Please make sure you catch Serena posthaste. I would hate for her to spend a long, cold night in the swamps."

_"I don't think it will be easy finding her, sir. She is the Kalos League Champion, after all."_

"Yes, but a Champion is nothing without her Pokemon." Teleurac ended the call.

"I do believe you and Serena will be reunited very soon," he said to Augustine. "The sooner the better, because we have machines and devices to rebuild, and having her Mega Evolved Pokemon to power them will work wonders in accelerating our plans."

"Which are . . . ?" Augustine began, thinking that now being an official member of Team Flare would make him privy to this kind of information – and if it would take time to repair the damage he and Serena had done, then maybe there would be sneaky ways to impede that progress.

Teleurac smirked. "Why, saving the world, of course."

* * *

><p>The Governor's penthouse had miraculously survived the ire of rioters. As Augustine was taken there, he kept looking out the car window, surveying what had happened. Now that most of the chaos had subsided, people and Pokemon were working together to clean debris off the streets, administer care to the injured, and put out the remaining embers in ashen ruins that were once homes and business establishments. A group of teenagers were helping a woman carry a Furfrou to a Pokemon Center; this woman's golden blonde hair hung so that it completely obscured her face, and Augustine watched her with intense curiosity and optimism until she pushed her hair back to reveal a thin face and a blotchy birthmark on her cheek. He bit the inside of his lip, careful to not let Teleurac see him react from the front seat, and then sighed when he saw his lab was still standing.<p>

Once at the penthouse, Teleurac escorted Augustine inside and then left after saying "Make yourself at home," locking the door behind him. Augustine peered through the peephole in the door to find two Team Flare grunts keeping watch outside, and he let out a huff. He dragged himself through the penthouse, which was lavish and luxurious while still sporting eco-friendly lights and furnishings, becoming acquainted with his new prison disguised as a home. After passing the kitchen in all of its stainless steel glory, he found a room which was rather empty aside from neatly-made queen size bed; he assumed it was the guest bedroom. He practically fell onto the bed and instantly succumbed to an uneasy sleep.

When he woke up several hours later, he groaned when he saw that he was still in Teleurac's penthouse. Everything that had happened in the last eighteen hours was so surreal to him; it had to be a dream. He should have woken up the morning of Christmas Eve to find himself at Serena's apartment, in her bed, with her curled up in his arms. Instead, he had slept away what was supposed to be their first Christmas together while trapped in Teleurac's penthouse; on top of that, her mother was probably wondering where they were.

He went back into the living area and looked out the window, his mouth gaping open slightly as he took in the sight of the destruction in the city. Smoke was still rising from burned buildings, people and Pokemon were digging through rubble, and arrests of unruly citizens were continuing. The train station was in view, and the whole western end of the structure had been reduced to a pile of bricks and stone. One of the stray Skiddo nudged at the head of another Skiddo, which was lying on the ground as rubble covered the rest of its body. After watching that Skiddo's futile attempts to rouse its companion, Augustine turned away and slumped onto the couch, staring at the television mounted on the wall as tears slid down his cheeks. A life goal of his was to reunite both of those Skiddo with their original Trainer or otherwise find a new home for them . . . now that goal would never be realized.

Why she had to call Alexa _then_, he thought, trying not to be too angry with Serena. In fact, why did she have to do any of the things she did last night? How hard would it have been to stop and make a plan instead of just winging it? And why didn't he try harder to make her do so? Also, why didn't he try harder when Grant gave him rock climbing lessons? Knowing how to climb seemed like a useful skill right now; he could open that window, climb down from thirty or so stories, and sneak out of the city somehow to go find Serena.

After realizing that a mental beat-up of himself wouldn't help anyone or anything, Augustine grabbed the remote control off the coffee table in front of him and turned on the television to a news channel. Malva was interviewing Paulette, a sales clerk at Boutique Couture who had heroically saved a toddler and that toddler's pet Azurill from angry rioters.

"Your bravery is inspiring, Paulette," Malva said, using her best generic journalist voice. "It is unbelievable that such things could happen here in Kalos, and on Christmas Eve no less."

"I know," agreed Paulette in a flat tone. She was still wearing her work uniform, but it was disheveled, her hair was untamed and wispy, and there was dirt and sweat all over her face.

"What do you think of people that can't take a holiday from stirring up conflicts, especially ones that lead to riots and destruction like Lumiose has never seen before?" Malva continued, pushing the microphone closer into Paulette's face. Paulette gave Malva a testy glance.

"Usually, I would be annoyed and angry, but I saw Serena's Holo footage on the internet. She was trying to warn us about –"

The broadcast instantly cut to a commercial break. Augustine rolled his eyes. How in the world was Teleurac, Malva, or anyone else going to cover anything up? If only he could get a platform to speak, then Kalos would know everything he knew. If barely thirty seconds of video where the Team Flare insignia was only briefly shown could get people riled up, he could only imagine how they would react to his account of the work he was doing for them.

At the end of the commercial break, the broadcast showed Malva standing in front of Boutique Couture by herself. Paulette was nowhere to be seen.

"Now, Governor Teleurac will give an address regarding last night's events."

The shot jumped to Teleurac, who was sitting at his desk in his office, staring straight into the camera. His face was perfectly grim and serious.

"Good afternoon, citizens of Kalos," Teleurac began. "I hoped to open by wishing everyone a _Joyeux Noel_, but that cannot be the case, especially here in Lumiose City. Instead, I must clear the air about a matter of highest importance." He paused to take a deep breath, perhaps to gather his thoughts.

"There is no point in hiding the truth anymore. Team Flare is once again active in Kalos, and I am its new leader. I regret that we had to conceal ourselves, but otherwise I believe that I would not have had the privilege to serve as this great region's Governor. Today's Team Flare wants to take the world in a much different direction than what we attempted to do three years ago. We hope to solve the world's problems through mutual cooperation and peaceful means, rather than through mass murder."

Augustine scoffed. What a liar, he thought as he recalled the models of cannon towers he had seen.

"I am very sorry for Team Flare's actions in the past. It is my wish that you, the good citizens of Kalos, would keep an open mind regarding myself and my administration, instead of giving in to any prejudices you may still harbor . . . like some already have. Serena Carlyle's feelings towards us are understandable, but her actions last night cannot be excused. She acted rashly, refused to hear me out when I tried to reason with her, and now innocent people and Pokemon in Lumiose City have paid the price for what she did. Right now Serena is an enemy of Kalos; as the region's League Champion, she is capable of anything and could be very dangerous. Until she is apprehended, nobody will be allowed to enter or leave Kalos, and travel to and from Lumiose City will be restricted. If she is watching right now, I ask her to stop and rethink the events of the past eighteen hours, and to come to me peacefully. I am willing to reopen the dialogue between myself and her so we can reach an understanding. Nothing would disappoint me more than if she let her personal biases and blind hatred get in the way of progress for Kalos."

Having had enough, Augustine turned off the television. Seething, he stood up, looked down at his shaking hand that was holding the remote control, and he clenched his teeth and shook his head. He resolved to make Teleurac regret keeping him around, and on impulse he hurled the remote control at the television, creating a spray of jagged cracks in the screen.


	17. Chapter 17

**SEVENTEEN**

Serena had lost track of how many days she had spent on the run, moving almost continuously to avoid being found by Team Flare grunts on her trail. She had managed to spend what felt like a couple of days holed up inside the Lost Hotel, until she was found by some hooligans who were likely after whatever reward money was on her head. Many nights were spent sleeping in the cold winter air with sparse shelter, aching and shivering to the bone and lucky if she could sleep for more than an hour at a time. Most time spent attempting to sleep was usually spent with her lying awake, listening to every little sound in her surroundings, paranoid that someone would jump out of nowhere and grab her. Food was a scarcity, and she often resorted to eating berries in trees, which were few in the winter. She now knew that Iapapa Berries did not agree with her; not only was the taste displeasing, they had left her disoriented and unable to walk three steps without falling over.

She had picked up sparse bits of news from listening to traveling Trainers or Pokemon Rangers, enough to find out the key points of Teleurac's address that he gave after the riot. There had been no word about Augustine or her friends, though. She found herself spending more mental energy worrying about them and watching out for her pursuers than figuring out a plan of action.

A plan of action would come, she told herself, but her first priority was figuring out a way to stay alive and not get caught - all without the help of her Pokemon.

* * *

><p>The snap of a twig under something's foot was enough to rouse Serena from her sleep. She poked her head out from her hiding place underneath a pile of brush and dead leaves, holding her breath, and saw that it was merely a group of wild Poochyena walking by, accompanied by a protective-looking Mightyena.<p>

She saw that the sun had risen, its light glistening off the nearby water in the river. After surveying the area once more to see that there were no humans in sight, she crawled out of her hiding spot and walked to the river, trying to comb out a twig that had become tangled in her hair as she went. She knelt down by the river and stopped underneath the bridge, scooped some cold water up with her hands, and drank up the small amount that had not fallen through her fingers. Her hands trembled from the feeling of cold water on her already freezing fingertips, and she shoved them in her jacket pockets in an attempt to warm them up. She rocked back and forth on the spot, keeping her head bowed and trying not to make too much noise as she breathed.

There were no berry trees in sight. And her stomach was growling. Weeds were growing along the riverbank, but none of them looked very edible. A Basculin swam by her, but she let it go. Before, she had minimized the amount of Pokemon meat she ate (abstaining from it became more natural thanks to Augustine's vegetarian cooking), but just a few days before she had caught one and tried to cook it for food. Her meal was interrupted when two Team Flare grunts saw the smoke from the fire she built.

She slowly stood up and looked south, towards Terminus Cave. The cave would be even worse in terms of food and water, but at least she could disappear in there. Another hiding place she had considered was the Pokemon Village, deep in the Winding Woods; there would be water and fruit to eat, but the extra time needed to travel there would also be extra time for Team Flare to track her down.

Up above, the rope bridge began to shake and sway from side to side. Serena froze, holding her breath, waiting for the bridge to stop moving. Once it did, she sidled out from underneath the bridge and ducked behind a bush to watch the group of six Team Flare grunts break open the door of Psychic Inver's house. A few minutes later, four of the grunts had dragged out Inver and his sister, taking them back across the bridge into Anistar City, ignoring the cries of protest from the two siblings.

A pit grew in her chest. She and those siblings had been friendly; in fact, anytime she passed through this route in the past, she would stop and have an Inverse Battle with Inver. Were they being arrested just because they knew her? Had they been suspected of giving her shelter and a hiding place? She continued to watch the house for a while as the remaining two Team Flare grunts went in and out, telling each other that nothing suspicious had been found in the house but it would be a good idea to hold the siblings for questioning anyway.

If only she had her Pokemon, she thought.

The Flare grunts said something else to each other that Serena couldn't understand; from there, they turned and went in opposite directions. One went back across the bridge into Anistar, and the other went on into Terminus Cave. Deciding now would probably be a good time to move on, Serena dashed back up the river to the rock formation she had used to climb down to the riverbank, and climbed up. She then sprinted across the bridge, looking in all directions she could turn her head to make sure nobody else was around. In her peripheral vision she saw something red, so she jumped behind Inver's house, tilting her head out slightly to watch another pair of Flare grunts pass by on their way to the bridge.

"So how many do we have to catch to make up for what we lost on Christmas Eve?" one of the grunts asked his companion.

"I think he wanted anywhere from fifty to a hundred," said the other grunt. "If we were out at Azure Bay right now, though, we'd probably be bringing in a couple hundred for him. Plenty of Pokemon in the sea, you know . . . ."

Once the grunts had crossed the bridge, Serena craned her neck out even farther to look out at Terminus Cave. The mine tracks laid out had grass and weeds growing all over them, and two wild Lairon were fighting over a rock. So much for that hiding place, she thought grudgingly.

Her gaze drifted farther south, towards Couriway Town, and she thought of how easy it would be for her to just keep going and evade capture for another day . . . which would also be another day of not saving anyone. Actually helping any of the Pokemon inside of the cave would be a challenge, but she at least wanted to see what was Team Flare was up to.

* * *

><p>Serena had only been to Terminus Cave once before, mainly to explore and see what types of Pokemon lived there. There were stories of a great monstrous Pokemon living deep within the bowels of the cave, but she never found it. With any luck, Team Flare wouldn't find it either.<p>

She slunk her way through the cave, ducking behind large rocks and stalagmites to avoid detection by Flare grunts that were moving about in pairs. When one of them said something about regrouping at the main site, she followed that grunt and his companion from a distance, utilizing her preferred hiding spots as needed. At one point, while crouching behind a boulder, her stomach growled again, louder than before; she held perfectly still and clutched her stomach, anxiously wondering if the grunts had heard it.

"You hear something?" she heard one of the grunts ask his companion. Her heart raced.

After a second of silence, the other grunt answered. "Nope."

When she heard footsteps again, Serena exhaled slowly and quietly. After craning her head around to make sure that they were walking again, she continued to follow them.

The Flare grunts wound their wave through the cave, down stairs, across rope bridges (which Serena bypassed by merely climbing down cliffs) and through narrow corridors until they reached the lowest level of the cave, where a larger group of Flare operatives standing around a rusty, dilapidated mine cart at the bottom of a shallow pit. Serena found a tall, wide rock formation and crouched behind it so she could observe what they were doing.

Two Admins stood at a table, poring over papers and discussing the items with one another. Grunts scooped up some Pokeballs from one metal bin, spread out, used their Pokemon to weaken the wild ones living in the cave before capturing them, and placing the filled Pokeballs in another metal bin.

One grunt was working on catching an entire group of Noibat with the help of her Emolga. Serena watched as the last remaining Noibat, having just been struck by a Shock Wave, sent a feeble Air Cutter flying towards its opponent. Having already received damage from fighting other Pokemon, Emolga was fainted by that attack. The grunt recalled her Pokemon, and Noibat flew away, weak and unable to maintain a stable flight pattern.

Noibat dropped to the ground, right next to Serena. Wings drooping at its side, it looked over Serena, scooting a little closer to her upon realizing she wore blue and purple (no matter how dirty) rather than red or black. It let out a feeble chirp, but Serena shushed it.

"Be quiet," she whispered, shifting to lay on her stomach so she could be at eye level with the small Pokemon, "Or they'll find you again." Her eyes glanced downward, and she identified that the Noibat was male. Noibat nodded in understanding, then hung his head, mouth sinking into a frown and eyelids lowering.

"Was that your whole family they got? . . . I'm really sorry," continued Serena soothingly. She reached out a hand to pat Noibat on the head, but he shrank back. She pulled her hand away. The Noibat squeaked out a small cry of grief, and Serena didn't bother to quiet him.

Not knowing what else to do for or about Noibat, Serena resumed her watch of Team Flare. The Admins nodded in agreement about something, and then called out to all the grunts to grab the remaining empty Pokeballs and follow them somewhere. Two grunts picked up the bin of empty balls, and the rest of them followed the Admins to the southern end of the cave, clumsily navigating ledges and cliffs until they all ascended to an upper level of the cave. When they were all gone, Serena sprang up and clamored down to the mine cart, stopping at the table covered with maps and papers.

The first thing to catch her attention was a box of granola bars. She glanced over her shoulder in the direction that the Flare members had gone, and then she grabbed a granola bar, ripped off the packaging, and bit off a large chunk. The bar dried out her mouth, but she didn't care; it was something to munch on other than barely-filling, sour tasting berries. Once she finished that bar, she ate another one, and then another, until there was only one left. She stashed in her jacket pocket for later.

Lying next to the box of granola bars was a Hyper Potion. She put that in her pocket as well, planning to use it to treat Noibat when she was done here.

There was a map of Terminus Cave spread out on the table, with rocks on each corner to weigh it down. A star was drawn in one place, with the caption "WORK HERE." Serena assumed that alluded to her current location, where they had been catching Pokemon. Another segment of map showed a chamber with a central hub and four dead-ended passageways extending from it. In the center of the hub, written in bright green ink, was the letter Z.

Somewhere from above, she heard a fearsome roar that came from some Pokemon she could not identify. It was probably the monstrous one rumored to live in the cave – and Team Flare had found it. Serena had heard its name before – it began with the letter Z, of course – but she couldn't figure it out, and it wasn't even on the tip of her tongue.

The rest of the papers on the table were information about the various species of Pokemon found in the cave, as well as contact information for Flare Admins supervising Pokemon catching operations in other areas of Kalos. Deciding that the table had no more to offer her, Serena walked around it to the metal bin that contained all of the Pokemon caught so far. She picked up a Pokeball and pressed the catch, sending out the Pupitar inside.

"Go on. Get out of here!" she said to Pupitar, waving her hand at it in a shooing motion.

As Pupitar scuttled away, she dropped the now empty Pokeball on the ground and stomped on it repeatedly until she heard a _crack_. She kicked the pieces of Pokeball out of her way, and then the ground shook. She stumbled back, and the edge of the table hit the small of her back. After regaining her footing, Serena scooped more Pokeballs out of the bin and released the Pokemon inside: Ariados, Graveler, Lairon, Shuckle, Sandshrew. She'd reach the other Noibat eventually, she told herself.

The ground shook again, with greater intensity than before. Serena fell on top of the metal bin and held onto it for support until the tremor ended. As she felt a small rock fall on her head, Serena wondered how Team Flare was faring in their fight against that Pokemon. If only she had a Master Ball, she thought. She would walk into that chamber, catch it, and be unstoppable.

Serena stood up and resumed her work of freeing the Pokemon, finally letting loose three Noibat in a row. The three Noibat flew off together, and the one who flew to Serena must have seen them, for she heard him cry out and try to fly after them. However, that Noibat dropped to the ground again, and cried out to the others. The other Noibat kept on flying, though, dodging small stalactites that fell from the ceiling.

Another violent tremor sounded off as Serena ran to Noibat's side. She pulled the Hyper Potion out of her pocket and administered the medicine to the small Pokemon. Noibat screeched vibrantly and rose into the air, just in time for the ground to shake again. Large rocks fell from the ceiling, splitting into pieces on the ground. Serena planted her hands on the ground, bracing herself until the earth was still again. In the distance, she heard people shouting at one another. When one shout of "GO!" was particularly loud, she turned and saw some Team Flare members returning to the area, and she immediately sprang to her feet and ran.

Luckily, she remembered the way she came, but the continued tremors and falling rocks complicated her movement. She almost fell off a rope bridge, finding herself holding on for dear life until she could hoist herself back up and keep going. A cluster of stalactites were shaken loose from the ceiling and sent plummeting down, and Serena dove into a somersault to avoid them. She heard one of the Flare grunts behind her, screaming "HEY! STOP!" but she smirked defiantly. What a fool, thinking she would stop for them, especially when the cave might collapse at any moment.

One stone staircase remained between Serena and the exit, and it was now twenty feet away. She noticed a Golbat flying over her head, staring her down aggressively. At its Trainer's command, Golbat shot supersonic waves from its mouth, but Serena swerved just in time to avoid them. She kept going, maintaining a slight zigzag pattern in her movement, hearing yet not looking to identify the source of a screech and the _whoosh_ of an Air Cutter being hurled. Not even another tremor, several times more powerful than all the previous ones, deterred her, for huge rocks were falling in front of her and she needed to be out of the way before they landed. She dove and somersaulted again to dodge them, the ground greeting her head and shoulders with a blunt pain and her ears filled with the deafening crashes and roars of falling rocks.

Serena continued up those stairs, stopping at the top when she heard muffled cries from humans. Looking back, she saw that the path before her was completely filled with rocks and debris, save for a small hole at the top. She stared at the rocks, dazed and dumbfounded, until the ground shook again and she bolted for the exit.

Once outside, she ran south, stopping at a tree right in front of the entrance to Couriway Town. She slumped against it, breathing heavily, closing her eyes to the sunlight that now felt too extreme. Tremors that felt like major earthquakes inside the cave were minor shakes outside; her first instinct was to clutch the ground the best she could, but she relaxed upon realizing that it wasn't necessary.

Why she had gone in, she wondered. Nothing had really been accomplished. She had found out about Team Flare's plans to catch more Pokemon, likely to sap up their energy and kill them in the process, but what could she do about it? The ones in the cave would break free somehow and just come back with more Pokeballs and catch more Pokemon, including the one of legend.

She finally remembered its name. _Zygarde._

Having decided it was time to move on, Serena rose to her feet and intended to continue south. However, Noibat was in her face, rapidly flapping his wings and chirping congenially at her.

"What are you doing here? I freed your friends," she said.

Noibat chirped and screeched at her, as if he was telling her why he was with her instead of inside the cave with his fellow Pokemon. He then flew in a circle around her head before ascending into the branches of the tree, reappearing with a ripe, plump Oran Berry. He offered it to Serena.

"Thanks!" she said, popping the berry in her mouth. Aside from being a little too bitter, the balance of flavor was almost perfect.

"Go on now. Go give Team Flare hell. Do more than I can. I – I'm worthless, you see."

Noibat's chirps sounded like dissent to Serena.

"Um . . . yeah. I'll be going now," said Serena. She turned away and crossed the road over to the riverbank, where she planned to walk alongside it to avoid going into town and being seen. Behind her, she heard Noibat's wings flap; she looked up to see that he had followed her.

"I don't have a Pokeball for you, so if you're going to come with me you'll have to be quiet."

Noibat nodded in understanding.

Serena walked on the outskirts of Couriway, ducking behind buildings anytime someone wearing red entered her line of sight. She smiled slightly; maybe now she could actually get something done instead of just running and hoping her Pokemon would magically appear again. As she walked on to Route 19, her mind's eye was filled with scenes of her swooping back into Lumiose on the back of a Noivern, battling fiercely against all who stood in her way.


	18. Chapter 18

**EIGHTEEN**

"It was just _gone?_" Teleurac said incredulously to the image of the Admin on his Holo Caster.

_"Y-yes . . . Zygarde was gone by the time we broke through the rocks. Must have caved itself in to gain some time to escape."_

Teleurac let out an exasperated sigh. Shifting in his chair, he reached over for his cup of coffee. "I don't want to see you in person again unless you have Zygarde in a Pokeball. Search the surrounding area, search underground, under every speck of dust if you must." He looked up at Augustine, who was sitting across the breakfast table and lazily playing with the chopped fruit on top of his crepe. "Professor, how much do you know about Zygarde?"

"Legends say it reveals itself when the ecosystem falls into disarray," replied Augustine listlessly. He had once read an account of an explorer who encountered Zygarde in the cave; that explorer had witnessed Zygarde's ability to camouflage itself to avoid detection. ". . . and that's all anyone really knows about it."

"Hmm . . . ." Teleurac scratched his chin as he contemplated his next response. "My last statement still stands. Get to it." He ended the call and stashed the Holo Caster in his pocket before taking a sip of coffee.

"Pardon the interruption, Augustine. Where was I?" he asked as he speared a strawberry with his fork.

"I believe you were telling me about something you found earlier while I was in the shower," said Augustine, keeping his tone flat. A few days after he first came to Teleurac's penthouse, he went back to the ruins of his apartment and found a few items still intact: a painting done by a Smeargle that lived at the lab, a picture of himself and Diantha back in their college days, some CDs, his diary, a frying pan, a picture of himself with Serena, a few articles of his own clothing, and an old college textbook. Everything else was beyond repair. All of them were brought to the penthouse and moved into his guest bedroom, all given their special place therein (the picture of him and Serena was kept under his pillow, since Teleurac didn't know he had it and hopefully would never find out)

"Well, I was reading your diary as I always do when you're otherwise occupied," said Teleurac, watching Augustine spit his coffee back into his cup. "I didn't know you wrote poetry!"

"That's private," hissed Augustine, feeling his cheeks grow warm. He had been living in the penthouse for almost three weeks at this point, and while Teleurac went about as if they were ordinary roommates, Augustine felt suffocated. The two men went to work together in the same car, shared every meal together, went grocery shopping together, Teleurac listened in on Augustine's Holo Caster calls, and even stood outside the door while the Professor used the restroom (like he really had the capability of contacting Serena while answering nature's call) Augustine once met Trevor and his other former students for coffee, and Teleurac even tagged along to that. Instead of a somewhat pleasant evening (as pleasant as it could be when they were living in something resembling a police state and one member of their group was missing) was filled with awkward forced conversation.

It seemed like nothing was sacred anymore, and every time Augustine looked at Teleurac his blood began to boil.

Teleurac chuckled. "How cute, thinking you still have the privilege of privacy. Not as cute as your free verses you scribbled out back in November, though. Don't worry; they'll be our little secret."

* * *

><p>Later that morning, Teleurac assembled all of Team Flare's head scientists for a meeting in a board room in the underground facility. Augustine sat at the Governor's left-hand side, now wearing a long red labcoat instead of his old white one. He had also been given a pair of wide black glasses, similar to what the other scientists wore. The electronic tablet in his hand was supposed to be for taking notes, but instead he had a drawing program open, and he doodled various Pokemon as he listened to the others talk.<p>

"Reconstruction of our energy extractors is coming along nicely. I project we'll have thirty operational units by the end of the month. We'll spend February restocking our energy reserves, and I believe we'll be ready to run tests for Phase One by the beginning of March. Celosia, there was one modification to the device I assigned to you. How is progress on that coming about?"

"Deciphering the original blueprints was a bit of a challenge, but I've figured out what materials are needed to complete it. I'll need to go to Geosenge to retrieve them," stated the purple-haired scientist as she adjusted her goggles.

"Leave as soon as you can. It is _crucial_ that that modification is made." Teleurac ordered.

"Sir, perhaps we should run a smaller scale test before we use the device for its secondary purpose – so, you know, it actually works," Aliana suggested.

"Its _primary_ purpose, you mean." Teleurac snapped. "Phase One is the true secondary purpose."

"Of course, sir," said Aliana meekly.

"Professor, Monsieur Lecroux has spent the past three weeks with you. Has he been able to Mega Evolve that damned Medicham _yet?_" Teleurac addressed Augustine.

Augustine snapped to attention. "No he hasn't. I believe he and Medicham have the necessary strength of friendship between Trainer and Pokemon, and he has the proper Mega Stones, but he is anxious and his sloppy technique never improves. Quite frankly, I'm not the one qualified to teach him good technique."

"_Make him figure it out," _hissed Teleurac. He was silent for a moment. "Perhaps we could call Diantha to help – an accomplished Trainer like her, skilled with Mega Evolution, should be able to help us."

"I'll see when she can come in," said Augustine.

"_Bien,_" said Teleurac as his mouth curved into his crooked smile.

Augustine resumed his doodling, paying close attention to Bryony's delineation of progress on her task, which was overseeing reconstruction of the device underneath Prism Tower. Now that it was the middle of January, most of the damage done by Serena and rioters had been fixed, but she explained in a self-congratulatory way how some components were cut out so that the device could run more efficiently. Just in time for Augustine to finish drawing the nose on his Fennekin sketch, Aliana presented a new design for a cannon tower. This one was taller and sleeker than what he had seen on Christmas Eve, and Aliana expressed hope in having a small-scale working model constructed in the coming week. She ended her presentation by showing a model of a cannon attachment that would go on top of Prism Tower itself.

"Any questions?" said Aliana at the conclusion of her presentation.

"Yes," said Augustine, loud and clear. "Who are we shooting at with these cannons?"

"Nobody . . . yet. This is just part of an initiative to bolster our regional defenses," explained Aliana.

"I understand," said Augustine, stunned and quizzical, "but turn Prism Tower into a weapon? For what? People are not going to be happy about this."

"As Aliana said, it's all for defending our great city. Someone will consider us an enemy worth attacking soon enough, just because of how we label ourselves," said Teleurac. "With any luck, we won't actually have to fire them."

* * *

><p>A quick call revealed that Diantha was available to come to Augustine's lab that very afternoon. She, Augustine, Teleurac, and Bernard Lecroux all assembled in the indoor battle arena on the lab's underground level. Diantha entered the arena, greeting Augustine and Bernard and wrinkling her nose and wincing slightly after Teleurac took her hand and kissed it.<p>

Once Bernard got over being starstruck by Diantha's presence, he let Medicham out of its Pokeball. Augustine got to work setting up the machine and computers he used to record data on Pokemon whenever they performed tests in this arena, glancing out of the corner of his eye from time to time to see if he needed to bail Diantha out of another uncomfortable situation.

"It is just splendid that you could join us today, Madame," Teleurac said suavely to Diantha.

"My pleasure," Diantha returned stiffly.

"There was actually a matter of business I hoped to discuss with you. As I am sure you are aware, the Kalos Pokemon League is currently without an eligible Champion . . . and I would like to reinstate you to the title."

"Really?" asked Diantha, pretending to be intrigued and pleased, but Augustine saw the reluctance flash across her face.

"_C'est vrai, ma belle_. Kalos needs a Champion with beauty, grace, poise, _maturity_ – all qualities that you have in spades. We can discuss details of this over dinner tonight. What time shall I retrieve you?"

Diantha shook her head. "Governor, I am flattered. You say nothing _but_ flattery. And yet, if I am once again Champion, this is news I will be celebrating with my dear Phoebe."

Augustine glanced up as she spoke, in time to see the look of shocked disappointment on Teleurac's face. He stifled a chuckle, then returned to positioning one of the machine's disc-shaped sensors so that it faced the center of the arena. Diantha must have started her relationship with Phoebe when he wasn't paying attention.

"Ah, you're seeing someone? That's wonderful, I suppose . . . surprised I haven't heard of it yet."

"She moved here from Hoenn shortly before Christmas, and I only met her last week. Anyway, enough about my personal life." She pulled a Pokeball out of her purse and tossed into the air, followed by her Gardevoir emerging in a flash of white light. While Diantha gave Bernard a brief, simple lecture about how best to conquer nerves, Augustine continued calibrating his machine, making sure the sensors were set to pick up wavelengths given off by Psychic-type moves. His mind flashed back to when Serena was in this space, allowing him to gather data on her Pokemon. It was only in October, yet it seemed like three lifetimes ago. He looked up when pink light began radiating from Diantha's Mega Charm, which was followed by light emanating from Gardevoir's Mega Stone. One explosion of light later, Mega Gardevoir stood majestically in their midst.

"Magnificent," Teleurac breathed, his eyes wide in awe. His Holo Caster beeped, and he answered it. Nobody's holographic image popped up; rather, the display showed the generic smiley face of an anonymous caller.

_"Hello? Have I reached Governor Teleurac?"_ the voice belonged to a man, who was speaking with urgency.

"This is he. Who are you?"

_"Excellent! Sir, I require just thirty seconds of your time. No – three minutes. Thirty perhaps! I am an officer of the International Police, with the codename of Looker. It has come to my attention that there is a threat to the peace in Kalos, and I feel the obligation to investigate. I am calling to ask your permission to cross the border into Kalos and look into this most pressing matter."_

"A 'threat to the peace?' To whom are you referring?" asked Teleurac suspiciously.

_"I heard that Team Rocket was active in Kiloude City. My former protégé and successor at the Looker Bureau, Emma, requested my help in snuffing them out."_

Teleurac rolled his eyes, then made eye contact with Augustine. He nodded his head towards the Holo Caster and mouthed "He's fooling nobody." Augustine briefly wondered if Emma was still busy following the bogus trail laid out for her.

"I had all communication between Kalos and the outside world shut down. How is it you are calling me, and where are you now?" the Governor pressed.

"_I am currently in Unova, and communication devices belonging to International Police officers are protected from silencing orders such as yours," _answered Looker testily.

There was a beat of silence before Teleurac spoke again.

"You did a fine job training Emma, Mr. Looker. She is the finest private investigator in Lumiose City. This Team Rocket case is taking a little longer than any of us anticipated, but your help is not really necessary. Emma can handle it herself."

Augustine missed the next part of the conversation; his attention was stolen by bright pink light swirling around Bernard's Medicham. Diantha was standing behind him, saying words of encouragement, and watched proudly as the light exploded to reveal Mega Medicham.

"I did it!" Bernard exclaimed, slapping a hand to the top of his dark, short-haired head. "Did you see that, Professor Sycamore?" he continued excitedly, turning to Augustine and pointing at his Pokemon. His eyes were wide with awe and pride.

"Yes. Excellent work!" replied Augustine, his own face breaking into a grin. Even if it was for a less-than-benign purpose, watching a first-time Mega Evolution filled him with joy. "Now, I want you and Medicham to have a battle with Diantha and Gardevoir, just so you can get a feel of working with your Pokemon while Mega Evolved. Try to use Psychic-type moves only, please." He shifted his focus to Diantha. "Go easy on him."

His joyful feeling went away when he heard Teleurac's next words to Looker.

"You are not welcome in Kalos, Mr. Looker. Not now, and perhaps not ever. Did you really think you could call me unannounced, lie to me about why you want to come back, and expect to get your way? I am not a forgetful man. Dr. Xerosic is in prison because of you, and you are one of Serena Carlyle's allies. If I catch you trying to enter Kalos, or if you even try to contact anyone here again, I will send my operatives after you." He hung up and thrust the Holo Caster back into his pocket, then turned his attention to the battle between Diantha and Bernard. Gardevoir launched one last powerful, blinding Moonblast that fainted Medicham.

"I thought I told you to go easy on him!" said Augustine jokingly.

"It's all right, Professor, really," Bernard piped up. "How'd I do?"

"You did very well!" Diantha said encouragingly as she recalled Gardevoir.

"Perhaps, but he's not here to battle his Pokemon," said Teleurac coolly. Augustine glared at him briefly, then inspected the numbers generated by his computer during the battle.

"The raw data for Medicham looks good," he commented, scanning the display on the computer monitor. "Once I do some statistical analysis, I'll know how it compares to the numbers I already have on file, and whether or not it will be worth considering future tests with this Medicham." It was time to remember those careless mistakes he made in his university statistics class, he told himself.

"Let me see." Teleurac crossed over to where Augustine stood, leaning over the Professor's shoulder and scanning the numbers. Augustine stepped away slightly, not wanting the Governor in his personal space.

"Of course, I'll want to capture several sets of data," added Augustine, stepping around his equipment and approaching Bernard. "Go upstairs to the second floor and have Cosette heal Medicham. While you're gone, I'll have some targets set up for Medicham to physically attack, as well as a larger sensor for Psychic-type moves. We'll do maybe three or four runs before we're done for the day, all right?"

"Sure," said Bernard, still visibly hyped. With a spring in his step, he exited the arena and went to the elevator.

Teleurac's Holo Caster beeped again. When it saw that President Oria was calling him, he looked at Diantha and pointed to the door; she nodded and did not hesitate to scurry out of the arena. Augustine remained to work on data analysis, finding places to create small errors in math that would drastically affect the end results. He also listened in on Teleurac's conversation.

"Ah, President Oria! We haven't spoken since before Christmas! How are you doing?"

_"Yes, only because Looker just now showed me how to bypass your Holo Caster restrictions on my own device."_ Oria did not sound like she was in a good mood. "_And don't give me that polite 'it's-good-to-see-you' malarkey. I suspected something was going on with your administration the moment you were elected, and now I know I'm right."_

"Just what do you plan to do about it?" asked Teleurac, dropping his false congeniality.

"_For starters, I will grant asylum to any Kalosian citizen who wants it."_

"And how do you plan to inform my constituency of such a generous act?" Teleurac asked, cocking an eyebrow. "And how will you ensure that people can actually take advantage of your generosity, when I have oceans, skies, and land borders patrolled constantly so that nobody can leave Kalos?"

Oria's face hardened, her eyes narrowing into an icy glower.

_"Governor, you and your administration are not only a threat to your own people, but I believe you endanger the other regions. I don't care how you want to present yourself as the new, reformed Team Flare. And if the people of Kalos can't find a way to help themselves be rid of you, I will. You will be child's play compared to Team Plasma."_

"Was that a threat?" Teleurac sounded amused, yet taken aback.

_"Perhaps it was."_

"Well, Madame President . . . should you make any attempt to fulfill that 'threat,' I will consider it an act of aggression, and my retaliation will be tenfold of what you give me!"

"_I know a Trainer who befriended the legendary Pokemon Reshiram, a very powerful Dragon. There's also another Trainer out there somewhere who has the legendary Zekrom, also a powerful Dragon. Zekrom and Reshiram are extremely dangerous together. Your move." _Oria ended the call.

"And I will steal those Pokemon from their Trainers and use them against you," Teleurac muttered angrily. He looked over to Augustine. "Why does Unova feel like it needs to be the Six Regions' police, making sure everyone behaves according to _their_ standards?! Opposing me and everything I'm working to accomplish - she practically declared war on us!"

Augustine did not respond. He imagined that there was soon going to be a use for those cannon towers, and the thought of it filled him with dread.

"You wanted to know who I want to save Kalos from, Professor? Well, now you have your answer."


	19. Chapter 19

**NINETEEN**

Serena considered herself to be pretty good at reading Pokemon. She could take a look at a Pokemon, watch it for a few minutes, and predict whether it would be a helper, more like a pet, or one more suited for battling. Right then, she could have used a fighter.

Unfortunately, Noibat was not much of one.

"Let's . . . try that again," she said, her voice altered by the congestion building up in her nose. She and Noibat had reached the Pokemon Village four days after Terminus Cave, having to lie low in the lower swamps of Route 19 for two days while Team Flare grunts conducted a training exercise in the area. Noibat had come in useful for finding edible fruits and berries, and his large ears allowed him to pick up on approaching people long before Serena heard them. However, Noibat's attacks were weak, and his accuracy in regards to moving targets was poor. Serena was trying to train his accuracy by picking flowers out of the ground and throwing them in the air for Noibat to slice using Air Cutter. His best attempt was marked by severing off the tip of a petal.

"Remember, aim for the stem," added Serena as she picked another flower and pointed to its stem. She then coughed, her body doubling over from the force of it. When she tossed this flower into the air, Noibat launched Air Cutter as usual, but completely missed the flower by an inch.

Why wasn't he getting it, she wondered in frustration. Greninja would be able to slice the flower stem five times before it even hit the ground – from fifty yards away, while blindfolded. Didn't Noibat understand what was going on? She didn't have time for him to be like this.

"Never mind, um . . . ." Serena sniffled. "Let's work on the power of your attacks for a bit. See that tree over there?" she pointed to a nearby small evergreen tree, which currently had two Espurr sitting underneath it. "Try to slice off a branch in one Air Cutter." She coughed again, and her throat felt like there were hundreds of tiny, scratchy needles stuck into it.

Noibat nodded in understanding, then flew off to the tree and began launching Air Cutters of various intensities at the branches. Serena watched, pulling up the collar of her jacket so it barely covered her nose and mouth. She coughed again, cursing her body for its feebleness. How dare she come down with a cold when she didn't have any medicine for it. At least her heightened body temperature gave her some warmth, but it came with the price of additional body aches and feeling generally miserable.

It wasn't Noibat's fault that he wasn't as good as Greninja, she reasoned. Greninja had years of training on his side, and being a sharpshooter with Water Shuriken came naturally to him. She had taken Noibat from his home and his family, and while she thought she needed a powerful Pokemon in the fight against Team Flare, maybe a small one with excellent hearing and a knack for finding berries would have its merits as well. Still, there was nothing wrong with assuring that Noibat could battle; knowing self-defense was never a bad idea.

Serena eyed the entrance to the Pokemon Village, where a hefty Zoroark was pacing back and forth in front of the opening in the trees that led back into the Winding Woods. That Zoroark must have been a newcomer to the area, she inferred, having never seen it before. It would explain why she found the entrance to the Village and was initially confused by the thick trees in the middle of it; she walked through anyway to find that those extra trees were an illusion.

Now, another figure had worked its way through the false trees: a large, gray-haired man wearing a light blue parka around his shoulders and holding a basket under his arm. Before Serena could discern those features, she leaped into a tall patch of flowers, lying on the ground and hoping the flowers would shield her sufficiently. She cursed under her breath when Noibat started screeching at the man.

"_Bonjour_ little one!" Wulfric greeted Noibat in his usual warm, booming voice. "I come in peace! No need to – ACK!" There was a small _whoosh_ of air that sounded similar to the sound effect associated with flying Air Cutters.

Serena shot upright to see that there was a shallow cut across Wulfric's cheek and Noibat hovering in midair a few feet away.

"Oh my – I am _so sorry_," she blurted out as she hopped out of the flowers and rushed over to Wulfric.

"Ah, no problem, I'm used to Pokemon here doing things like – _Serena?!"_ Wulfric hopped back slightly when he recognized her.

"Uh, yeah, it's me," said Serena. She looked past Wulfric, raising herself up on her toes in order to do so. "Are you alone?" she whispered.

Wulfric nodded.

"This must be a great place to hide from the authorities – especially if I'm just now seeing you here," he added, giving her an earnest pat on the shoulder.

"I've only actually been here a couple of days," confessed Serena, following with a series of coughs. She covered her mouth with her jacket collar.

"Come with me." Wulfric gestured for her to follow him to the other side of the Pokemon Village, up to the creek that ran next to the blocked-off cave. Several Pokemon – Noibat included - tagged along, walking behind the two of them. Once at the riverbank, he laid out a blanket and sat down before pulling out a few slices of bread, some cheese, and sandwich meats. Serena sat on the blanket as well, across from him. At the bottom of his basket was an assortment of Pokepuffs.

"Serena, you don't look well," said Wulfric, looking over her face and letting his eyes rest on her red nose. "Make yourself a sandwich."

"Oh – thanks," she said with a sniffle. She made a sandwich that consisted of a slice of cheese between the bread, but she eyed the meats curiously.

"And you're skinnier since I last saw you. What have you been eating?" he continued as he passed out Pokepuffs to the Pokemon that were congregating around them.

"Just anything I could find, mostly," responded Serena before biting into her sandwich. All of the components of the sandwich were cold, and it tasted bland. Noibat swooped in and landed next to her, happily taking a mocha Pokepuff from Wulfric.

Her eyes drifted back to the entrance of the Pokemon Village; Zoroark was still there.

"Are you – are you going to tell anyone I'm here?" she asked Wulfric nervously.

"Why would I?"

Serena sighed in relief.

"You're figuring out what to do about Team Flare, right? You and your Pokemon have a plan of action?" he asked before assembling his own sandwich, piling the meats on high.

"Right now I'm just trying to stay alive and not get caught," admitted Serena; she then sneezed forcefully. "And . . . they have my Pokemon. Noibat followed me from Terminus Cave, and I'm training him . . . kind of . . . . What's going on back in civilization?"

Wulfric's expression soured. "You really want to know?"

She nodded firmly.

"Well, for starters, nobody enters or leaves Kalos. I heard a story about two Hikers being badly burned by patrolling Houndoom because they got too close to the border with Unova. Communication from the outside world's been shut down. Police and those Team Flare clowns are everywhere, well, at least in Snowbelle they are: outside the Pokemon Center, on every street corner, sometimes randomly searching homes and people. Ramos told me things are more or less the same out in Coumarine . . . ." Wulfric pause to eat a bite of his sandwich. "I've seen challengers come in, battle me, earn their badge, and think they're invincible. One Trainer left my Gym and challenged the first Flare member she saw to a battle. Unfortunately, she lost. She was arrested and her Pokemon were taken from her. Oh, and the bounty on your head's doubled."

Serena snorted in amusement at the comment regarding the bounty. "Do you know anything about my family or friends?" It would be a miracle of any of them escaped Teleurac's wrath, she thought.

"No, nothing about your mother or your friends," said Wulfric apologetically. "But I've seen on television, um . . . ." He cast his eyes down and tightened his mouth into a thin grimace.

_"What?" _Panic was rising inside of Serena.

"Professor Sycamore's one of them now." Wulfric said, his voice strangled. "You think you know someone – I'm sorry, Serena."

Serena let go of the sandwich in her hand, letting it drop onto the blanket, and she shook her head in disbelief. It didn't make sense – why would he join Team Flare, unless he was forced to? What was being done to him?

"Any other riots?" she asked hurriedly. "Is anyone dead? How many are in jail because of what happened that night?"

"I honestly don't know," answered Wulfric solemnly. "It's quiet in Snowbelle. Eerily so, and probably because people are scared. And there's been almost no news from Lumiose."

Serena coughed violently again, burying her face in her jacket's sleeve. It was then silent for a few minutes as Wulfric ate his sandwich, taking breaks to interact with nearby Pokemon. Serena hugged her knees to her chest and turned her head to look down at Noibat, although her eyes were unfocused and she stared into space. There were so many things she could have done differently that night, she thought. She could have gone deeper into the facility rather than up into Centrico Plaza, or stayed put and let Augustine try the diplomatic approach. She should have at least taken her Pokemon to the party with her – it could have all ended that night had she done so.

"How long do you plan on staying here?" Wulfric asked suddenly.

"As long as I need to," replied Serena, her voice raspy from coughing.

"You need to rest, Serena. I'll be back same time next week. If you want to stick around that long, I'll bring you some things."

"That would be wonderful," said Serena as she smiled weakly.

* * *

><p>The following week, Wulfric arrived at the same time, like he said he would. He brought soup for Serena, cold medicine, a Pokeball for Noibat, a change of clothes (including a proper coat) and a backpack full of wilderness survival essentials. The medicine cleared her congestion and suppressed her coughing for a couple of hours at a time, enough for her to help Wulfric tend to the flower gardens in the Village and administer food to the Pokemon there; it took a few more days for her to completely recover. As two more weeks passed by, it became a routine for the both of them, and Wulfric would tell her news about the outside world. When he told her about an anti-Team Flare demonstration in Ambrette that was swiftly crushed, she spent the rest of the day thinking about those people and Pokemon whose lives had been ruined thanks to what she had done.<p>

Training Noibat occupied most of her time. Noibat had learned to successfully strike moving targets, and Serena decided to move on to working on his defenses. Defensive training involved throwing small rocks and hoping Noibat would either dodge or deflect them back towards her. Most of the time he could defend himself, but whenever he was hit with a rock he shrieked at Serena.

"Well, we can't battle the other Pokemon," she reminded Noibat. Wulfric didn't care that she trained in the Village, but he had asked her to leave its permanent residents alone.

Serena looked over to where Zoroark stood at the entrance of the Village. She considered going into the Woods and allowing Noibat to pick fights with the wild Pokemon, keeping in mind that they would probably be stronger. On top of that, there was always the chance that someone from Team Flare or the police tracked her and came out this far.

"Hey Noibat," she called to her Pokemon. "Want to go into the woods for a little while?"

Noibat chirped excitedly. Serena recalled Noibat into the Pokeball Wulfric had given her and made her way out of the Pokemon Village.

She resolved to not go too far away from the Village, but the area of woods in front of her was practically deserted. The only living being in sight was a Sudowoodo, and Serena wanted to find a Foongus or a Trevenant for Noibat. Having the type advantage would make training easier.

The next area of the woods she entered was a roughly circular clearing with a lone tree in the middle of it. There were no Pokemon here either, and not even a patch of tall grass or fake-looking Pokeballs on the ground. She stepped closer to the tree, but stopped when she heard a girl's screams.

That girl ran into the clearing, and Serena darted behind the tree and began to climb it, going around the side a bit so she could see what was happening. She perched herself on a tree limb, the thick green foliage from surrounding limbs covering her yet leaving a space just large enough for her to see what was happening down below. Now she could see that a Flare grunt was advancing on the girl, holding his open palm out towards her.

"Give me your Pokemon!" the grunt demanded.

"No! You can't have Sylveon!" cried the girl. From the sound of her voice and the brief glimpse of her that Serena got, she had to be no older than thirteen.

The grunt sent out her Scolipede. "Make her ill," she ordered.

Scolipede charged at the girl, who backed up against the tree and screamed in terror again. Almost instinctively, Serena released Noibat and beckoned for him to come in close. "Attack the Scolipede," she whispered. After nodding in understanding, Noibat spread its wings and zoomed through the foliage.

From her vantage point, Serena had a limited view of the battle. She initially wondered if sending Noibat to battle a Team Flare member's Pokemon was a good idea, but her concern was assuaged once Noibat dove down swiftly and bit into Scolipede's belly with a Super Fang. Scolipede shook Noibat off, following with Venoshock that landed a critical hit. Once Noibat got back in the air, Serena noticed a festering black spot on his wing – he had been poisoned.

"Come on, you can do it," she breathed. "One good Air Cutter is all you need."

Almost as if he heard, Noibat swiped his non-injured wing across his body, sending sharp currents of air flying towards Scolipede. The attack struck Scolipede in the face and knocked it back some, but it did not faint. Scolipede retaliated with another Venoshock, which hit Noibat in the stomach. Although Noibat's health was falling fast (the festering black spot slowly growing larger) he launched one last Air Cutter, landed a critical hit, and fainted Scolipede.

"Come back," she murmured. Immediately, Noibat flew haphazardly back to where she was in the tree. "Good job," she added, recalling him back to his Pokeball.

"What the – where'd you go, Noibat? Come back here! I'm not through with you!" the grunt shouted. Serena braced herself as the tree swayed slightly, and she looked down to see that the grunt was attempting to climb her way up.

Being careful not to move the branches and limbs around her excessively, Serena began her descent. There was a _thud_ followed by the grunt shouting "_Merde!_" Serena grabbed the next limb and held still for a moment until the tree swayed again, indicating that the grunt was making her second attempt at climbing. Serena climbed down another four feet, and then jumped the rest of the way to the ground.

The girl who was being chased was on that side of the tree, her back pressed against the trunk and a look of terror and confusion on her face. Serena landed right in front of her; once she got over the initial shockwave of pain shooting through her feet and lower leg from landing that hard, she straightened her body and started to back away. The girl's hand flew up to her mouth to stifle a gasp, and her eyes widened when she recognized who was standing before her. Serena whispered "Run" and watched briefly to make sure that the girl did so, escaping the clearing while the Flare grunt still ambled her way up the tree.

"I'm on the ground now, by the way," Serena said tauntingly. "Catch me if you can!" She turned and sprinted away, not stopping until she was back in the Pokemon Village. She watched the Village's entrance for a while, until she thought it reasonable to conclude that the grunt had lost her.

* * *

><p>There was a Full Restore in the backpack provided to her by Wulfric, and Serena used it to restore Noibat's health. She watched as the festering black spot on his wing shrank, the color returned to his face, and he breathed evenly again.<p>

"You did wonderfully," said Serena, scratching Noibat behind his ears. Noibat chirped happily as he positioned himself in Serena's lap and looked up at her proudly.

"My wimpy training program really pales in comparison now, doesn't it?" she asked jokingly, still petting her Pokemon. "I'll find you more Team Flare goons to fight soon. I promise."


	20. Chapter 20

**TWENTY**

For the first time since December, Augustine now had a break from Teleurac. The Governor had ventured out with Aliana and her team to survey Kalos for ideal places to erect "defensive outposts," as they were called, and so far they had been gone for a whole week. In the meantime, an Admin named Dominic stayed at the penthouse with Augustine and accompanied him on errands. Augustine may not have had any time alone, but at least Dominic didn't read his diary.

Mable scrutinized, inspected his methods, and accepted his purposefully botched statistical analyses as proof that Bernard's Mega-Evolved Medicham would not be a worthy investment when it came to generating more energy for their use. Bernard was then released from Team Flare custody and allowed to keep his Pokemon (returning the Medichamite to Augustine), but was still required to check in with the police every week to assure them that he was behaving. In the meantime, several Trainers who thought they could take Flare Admins in battle lost and had their Pokemon taken from them. Augustine had not missed watching the experiments and procedures performed on Pokemon, but now that there were new operational energy extractors, his days were once more filled with pained cries of Pokemon having their brains and bodies fried . . . all in the name of progress and defending Kalos.

* * *

><p>Dominic escorted Augustine to the underground facility, making sure he found the room where energy extraction procedures were conducted. The first thing he noticed when he got in was the boxy energy extractor and its attachments. A series of wires and tubes connected the machine with an apparatus resembling a satellite dish. In the dish's basin, turned at an angle from the machine, was a metal rod that was also connected to the edges of the dish with six thin gauge metal wires. Standing just two feet from both the machine and the dish, like it was the point of a triangle, was a five foot tall barred cage.<p>

The cage was new. Apparently cold surgical tables would no longer cut it.

"Professor Sycamore!" Mable greeted him as she entered the room. She held a Pokeball in her hand. "I hope you haven't forgotten how the routine goes here," she added, nodding to the computer set up behind the machine.

"Ah, yes. Pardon me," said Augustine as he crossed over to the computer. He booted it up and opened the program used to collect data. How could he forget the routine? Pokemon were hooked to the machine, their brains were given electrical stimulation that forced them to attack the metal rod in the dish for an extended period of time, and were often shocked into a comatose state now that the scientists had found out how much stimulation they could take and still live to face the procedure another day.

"I received your report, by the way," said Mable idly as she turned some knobs on the machine to calibrate it. "Good work as usual. You know, for someone who hates his job and the people he works with, you do quite well here. Are you sure you don't secretly like or agree with us?" she teased.

"_Non,_ I'm afraid you all still repulse me," replied Augustine.

Mable sighed. "At least you look good in red."

Augustine glanced down at his coat, then back up at the computer monitor.

"Ready yet?" Mable asked him.

"Yes," he answered. He didn't look up as Mable let out whichever Pokemon was in the Pokeball she brought with her, but he heard the Pokemon bleat angrily. As Mable dictated information to him, he typed it down in the appropriate box in the computer program, but stopped on occasion to adjust his goggles. They felt so bulky and in-the-way to him, he didn't know how any of the Team Flare scientists could get any work done while wearing them.

"Today's date is February sixteenth . . . subject is a female Ampharos . . . height is 1.39 meters, appears very healthy . . . expected to yield approximately six hundred kilojoules per five minutes of electrical stimulation at 1000 volts . . . no prior procedures . . . received from a Pokemon Trainer on December the twenty-fourth of last year . . . ."

He craned his neck around, seeing that Mable had forced the Ampharos into the cage, shutting and locking the door with one hand while she held the machine's two electrodes in her other hand. Ampharos continued to bleat furiously at Mable, then cried in pain as Mable jabbed the electrodes into particular spots in her brain. When Mable moved out of the way and returned to the machine, Augustine saw that Ampharos was wearing a pendant around her neck, and he instantly recognized it as Ampharosite. He felt like a Sawk had kicked him hard in the chest.

"Don't worry, Ampharos. The shocks you're about to receive will override the effects of your inhibitory neurotransmitter patch," sneered Mable. "Then you can shoot Thunderbolt for me all you want!"

"I don't think we can use this Ampharos." Augustine blurted out, his voice shaky.

"_Why not?"_ Mable asked, slowly approaching him.

"The Governor wanted her to be saved for later, to be used only when a certain condition is met. That condition hasn't been met yet, so we can't use her," blabbered Augustine, wondering if Mable realized that this was Serena's Ampharos in front of her and was designated for use only when Mega Evolved. Ampharos kept bleating and crying out, throwing her body against the cage in hopes of forcing it open. Blood was trickling down the side of her head, originating from the places where the electrodes were inserted.

"One procedure won't spoil it, Professor," snapped Mable. "And since you decided our model Mega Evolved Medicham wasn't good enough for this, I've had to look elsewhere."

"Don't you dare use Ampharos, or any of her other Pokemon." Augustine tried to sound menacing, but a small shake in his voice betrayed him. He didn't really have a way to save Ampharos from this, or to get Mable to listen to him.

Mable rested a gloved hand on her hip and pointed the index finger of her other hand at his chest. "I don't take orders from you. _You_ take orders from _me," _she said shortly, pointing from him back to herself. "And I don't give a Pichu's ass about your juvenile desire to protect your fugitive girlfriend's precious Pokemon. We have a quota of ten thousand megajoules to generate today, and it's all got to come from somewhere." She turned away from him, towards the energy extractor. Before she could reach out for a knob on the side of the machine, Augustine ran forward and jumped between her and the knob.

He had promised Serena that no harm would come to her Pokemon. Nothing in the universe would force him to abandon that promise. If he could do that for her, then perhaps she would forgive him for doing Team Flare's bidding for so long.

"Mable, I'm asking you. Please don't do this."

"I don't see any alternatives around here, do you?"

He froze. There were alternatives to Ampharos . . . four of them, with him right now.

Augustine reached a shaking hand into the inside of his coat, where his Pokeballs were affixed. He found the one that was the third one down, plucked it off its hook, and held it out to Mable.

"My Charizard," he said despondently.

Mable took the Pokeball from his hand, glanced back at Ampharos, and then the corner of her mouth twitched up into a smirk. "Good enough, I suppose."

* * *

><p>Dominic was called to respond to a small anti-Flare protest brewing in Bleu Plaza, so Augustine was locked in and alone at the penthouse that evening, and he skipped dinner in favor of nursing Charizard back to health. He had been escorted straight from the facility back to the penthouse, so going to Cosette at his lab or a Pokemon Center was out of the question. The only Pokemon medicine in the penthouse was a Super Potion; he used it, and it did very little to close up the actual holes in Charizard's skull that were created by the insertion of those electrodes. Augustine sat on the floor of the living room, with Charizard's head lying on his lap, and he did the best he could to clean and bandage his Pokemon's forehead while constantly repeating apologies. Charizard moaned in pain from time to time, and he kept his eyes shut.<p>

_"__Tu es mon soleil, mon joli soleil,"_ Augustine sang softly, letting tears drip freely from his eyes. _"Tu me rends hereux quand je suis triste,_" His voice began to wobble slightly. Charizard moaned again, and Augustine flashed back to earlier in the day when he watched his Pokemon undergo the procedure. Those roars and cries would haunt him forever, which was perhaps the most fitting punishment for what he had done.

_"__Tu ne sauras jamais combien je t'aime, ange,"_

He regretted handing Charizard over to Mable the moment the Pokeball made it into her hand. It didn't make sense, it wasn't logical – he chose to honor a promise he made to Serena, who he might never even see again, over the well-being of a Pokemon that trusted him and looked up to him for safety and comfort. Charizard wasn't even given the option to consent or object to the procedure. He didn't understand what had happened to him. All Charizard knew was that for two hours, his bodily autonomy was stolen from him as he was forced to cast Flamethrower after Flamethrower at that dish receptor. If only there was a way to extract energy from humans like this – Augustine would volunteer to partake in it without a second thought now.

_"__Tu es mon étoile du ciel."_

Augustine saw that Charizard was asleep now, and he returned the Pokemon to his Pokeball. He stood up slowly and walked to the window, clutching Charizard's Pokeball to his chest. In the distance, he saw the silhouette of Prism Tower, the thin bulb-shaped cannon on top of it, and the patrolling Pokemon that flew in circles around it. He thought of what Trevor said when the cannon was first attached: "I guess he's building his own ultimate weapon."

Was there a way out? That was a question he had frequently asked himself ever since he realized that the Department of Environmental Sustainability was just a cover for Team Flare's operations. He had allowed his responsibility to his lab's employees and Pokemon to suck him into this mess, and now he knew that he was in too deep to simply hand in a resignation and walk away. Teleurac would never allow that. There were times when he considered opening the window in front of him and flying away on Charizard, to go find Serena and join her on the run, but odds were that he wouldn't make it past the sky patrollers and their Flying-types. Flying away was definitely not an option now, with Charizard injured and possibly facing permanent brain damage.

Or perhaps he needed to stay put and find another way to sabotage their work. To stay put, and make it easier for Serena to reach him if she ever made it back to Lumiose. She could be in the city right now and he wouldn't know it. Or she could have frozen to death, alone in the wilderness, and her remains scavenged upon by some wild Pokemon – no! The thought of it triggered the release of more tears. He _would_ see her again, look upon her face and see her smile, kiss her lips, take her into his arms and never ever let go –

The door behind him opened. He swiftly wiped his face dry and turned to see Teleurac standing in the doorway. The Governor had circles under his eyes and a suitcase under his arm.

"Good evening, Augustine," he said tiredly, stepping inside and closing the door behind himself. He took a few seconds to examine Augustine's face, noting how the Professor's eyes were red. "Where is Dominic?"

"He was called out to Bleu Plaza," said Augustine. "There wasn't time for him to arrange another, erm, supervisor." He didn't think "supervisor" was quite the correct term, but it was the first word that came to mind.

"I'll have a word with him . . . you are not to be left alone," sighed Teleurac. He was silent for a few seconds.

"Mable told me what happened today in the lab – walk with me," Teleurac gestured to the hall, and Augustine followed him there to the master bedroom, quickly ducking into his own room to place Charizard's Pokeball on the nightstand.

"In my opinion, you committed no insubordination. True, it is unfortunate that you allow your personal feelings to get in the way sometimes, but I had told her that Ampharos and her companions were to be saved for later."

The master bedroom, where Teleurac slept, was neatly organized and decorated in warm neutral tones, with the exception of the crimson duvet on the bed. Teleurac set his suitcase down on the floor next to the foot of his bed before sitting down closer to the headboard. His eyes found the framed picture on the nightstand, and his gaze lingered there for a moment. Augustine saw the hope and longing in Teleurac's expression.

"I suppose it's universal, that we act rashly and will do anything for those most dear to us," mused Teleurac, still looking at the picture on the nightstand. Augustine stepped closer and craned his head to see what was depicted in that picture: a young girl, appearing to be around seven years old, with light brown hair and a Vulpix sitting in her lap. She was smiling at the camera, displaying that she was missing one of her front teeth. He recognized this girl; another picture of her was hanging in Teleurac's office in City Hall, next to that print of "The King, the Pokemon, and the Key."

"Her name was Roselie," said Teleurac softly, his eyes wet and glistening. "She loved Pokemon more than life itself, and she was going to be a Trainer . . . . You remember several years back, when air pollution was a problem in Kalos, and so many children got sick? She had pneumonia . . . and she was only eight . . . ." he paused for a moment, holding his fist up to his mouth and squeezing his eyes shut. "Nobody wants to change anything until enough children die to catch people's attention."

His eyes, sorrowful and pensive, flickered upwards to meet Augustine's. "I tell myself that I need to make the world a place I would be comfortable having Roselie live in. But if she were still here, and she knew what I have done and the sacrifices that were made, it would break her heart."

* * *

><p>Frustrated with his inability to fall asleep, Augustine rolled over in his bed and stretched out an arm to feel around for the nightstand. He found his Holo Caster, and checked the time display: almost two thirty in the morning. Two and a half hours after retiring for the evening, and he was still wide awake, unable to shake from his mind the sight of Charizard going into muscular spasms as a result of the electrical stimulation, or the echoes of his Pokemon's anguished roars. If this was the universe's way of punishing him for making Charizard suffer like this, it would have to try harder. One sleepless night was not penance enough, in the Professor's opinion. Nothing would be.<p>

He grabbed the Holo Caster and opened the Kalos news website. The main story was about the protest in Bleu Plaza that Dominic left him to cover. Only a minor demonstration had taken place by the looks of it – a group of students from the university asking to reopen communication to the other regions – and it was met with the kind of brute force only a Houndoom squad could deliver. Everyone involved was arrested, some with horrendous bites and burns that would require extensive treatment but never truly heal, in the case of the burns.

Augustine then heard Teleurac's voice coming from the master bedroom, but it was unintelligible. He slowly got out of bed, quietly opened the door, and tiptoed down the dark hallway until he was outside the door. He saw the faint bluish glow of the Holo Caster from underneath the door.

"If you can spare the people, send scouts out into the surrounding area!" he heard Teleurac say.

His heart raced. Had they found Serena?

The person on the other end of the Holo Caster call then said something indiscernible to Augustine, and Teleurac followed with "Then send out those two! Tell them not to get too far away from our side of the border, and tell them not to attack anyone. Not even if they recognize the ones who attacked the base . . . good. Send the footage to Malva. I will speak to you again soon."

A few seconds later, the door opened, and Augustine didn't have enough time to scramble back into his bedroom.

"How much did you hear?" Teleurac asked as he threw on his coat.

"Not much," said Augustine.

"Ah . . . well, the Kalosian Guard's largest outpost near our border with Unova was just attacked. I'm heading down to the facility, and I'll be locking you in for the night. I'll have someone retrieve you in the morning."

Teleurac dashed out of the penthouse, leaving Augustine locked in as he said he would. Augustine went into the living room, grabbing his Holo Caster on the way, and slumped into the couch. His gaze lingered out the window, on the moonlit silhouette of Prism Tower, until he finally dozed off into a light sleep.

The next thing he knew, his Holo Caster was beeping. He quickly sat up, saw that it was now almost seven in the morning, and answered it. The holographic image of a very grim and tired-looking Teleurac appeared on the display.

_"Good morning, Kalos. It is with a heavy heart that I bring you this news. Last night, the Kalosian Guard was attacked by Unovian militia members near the border between our two regions. And although we succeeded in driving away those who attacked us, it came with the cost of three lives. Three brave souls, who gave everything to keep us safe and secure. We have video surveillance footage of the attack, which will be available on the internet for those who wish to see it – exercise caution, for it is graphic and disturbing._

_"President Oria of Unova does not deny ordering this attack. When I spoke to her, she told me that it would be the first of many! She wants to wrest control of Kalos from my hands, and reform it to be the way _she_ wants it to be. Good citizens, I believe we have made too much progress in the past six months to just throw it all away. I know I have asked you to sacrifice many things in the name of a better future, but I promise you that the payoff will be worth it . . . and Madame Oria wants to endanger our better future."_

Augustine rolled his eyes, following with a yawn.

_"I refuse to let her do that. As Governor of Kalos, it is my duty to protect this region, its people, and its Pokemon from any who may threaten them. And I will do whatever it takes to accomplish it." _Teleurac's hologram shrank away.

Augustine yawned, then scratched his eyes. He pushed himself up off the couch and shuffled into the kitchen. As he made his coffee, he replayed Teleurac's address in his head. It seemed strange to him, how men like Teleurac could exist. Last night, the man had candidly spoken of his daughter for the first and perhaps the last time, and Augustine thought he saw genuine displays of emotion. He reminded himself to find the video of the attack later, to see how much Teleurac had lied in that address – or how carefully selected and edited the video was, at least.

When his eyes drifted up towards the window into the living room again, he stopped to look at Prism Tower. The cannon bolted to the top of it was rotating, going from pointing straight up to pointing east, at only a small angle from the vertical. Cup of coffee in hand, Augustine apprehensively approached the window, waiting to see if something else would happen. Surely Teleurac wouldn't retaliate this soon, he thought anxiously. He didn't have all the facts of the matter – perhaps he would need to consult with the others –

A red energy beam light erupted from the cannon, shooting into the sky at a diagonal and flying eastward. The beam traveled farther than Augustine could see, or perhaps farther than anyone in Kalos could see. Prism Tower shook as the cannon fired, and the ground wobbled as well. Thirty seconds after the initial burst, the cannon was still, and the remnants of that beam flew off, cutting a line across the pale orange sunrise._  
><em>


	21. Chapter 21

**TWENTY-ONE**

As she watched the red beam of light streak across the early morning sky, Serena first thought of the large weapon that slept underneath Geosenge – had it been reactivated? And if so, what was its target? She then remembered that it now buried by tons of rubble, and even if Teleurac had found the key to it, it would be of no use to him in its current state. Yet, she couldn't think of anything else it could be.

The Pokemon in the meadow had noticed as well, and now they were all communicating with one another. Although Serena couldn't understand what they were saying, she thought they sounded curious and scared of whatever that red beam was. Noibat chirped at her, as if he was asking what was going on, and all she could do was answer "I don't know."

Once the initial shock had worn off, Serena set to her morning routine: making sure each resident of the Pokemon Village had something to eat before she prepared her own breakfast, quickly washing herself in the creek, and preparing for Noibat's daily training. After bathing, she dressed herself in some spare clothes Wulfric had brought her: a sweater, jeans, sturdy hiking boots, and a coat. She finished dressing by stuffing her damp hair into a thick ski cap, just in time to see Wulfric enter the Pokemon Village.

"You're early," she greeted him. Wulfric's demeanor was different; instead of his usual warm and congenial self, he appeared aloof and troubled.

"Serena, something's happened," said Wulfric somberly. He pulled his Holo Caster out of his pocket and opened it to a news article that read "STRIKE BACK AGAINST UNOVA." She read the article, eyes wide with incredulity, at the account of retaliation against a surprise attack on a Kalosian Guard outpost.

"'Scouts report that the entirety of Aspertia City in western Unova has been destroyed . . . estimated three hundred casualties . . . sure to send a message to President Oria, says Governor Teleurac . . . cease and desist . . . the Governor hopes to negotiate terms,'" Serena stopped reading and handed the Holo Caster back to Wulfric.

"He's turned Prism Tower into a weapon of mass destruction," added Wulfric.

Serena inhaled deeply, and it took a few seconds to force herself to exhale. "I have to go. I've stayed here long enough," she said quickly, digging in her coat pocket for Noibat's Pokeball and then recalling the Pokemon.

"What are you doing?" asked Wulfric.

"I need to go back to Lumiose," she responded, finding her backpack underneath a tree. "I shouldn't have dawdled out here as long as I have –"

"They are searching people who try to get into the city," said Wulfric sternly.

"I'll get myself captured if that's what it takes. It's time I actually did something instead of just hide."

Serena slung the backpack over her shoulders and approached Wulfric. "Thank you, by the way. For everything."

* * *

><p>After spending two days heading north through the thickest and densest areas of the Winding Woods and swiftly navigating the open spaces south of Route 21, Serena arrived at Santalune Forest. She decided to stop there for the night, making a crude shelter out of fallen tree limbs and leaves and letting Noibat out of his Pokeball so he could listen for approaching humans. When the sun rose in the morning, the first thing she did was tear the shelter down and scatter its components, which included handing a few tree limbs to a group of interested Pansear.<p>

Serena found the main path through the forest and walked alongside it, keeping a dozen yards between herself and the path at all times. As she walked, she imagined having all of her Pokemon back, and having them destroy everything inside Team Flare's facility. She also tried to figure out whether Mega Evolved Lucario or Mega Evolved Charizard would be strong enough to destroy the parts of Prism Tower that had been turned into a weapon, without harming the tower itself. Finally, she imagined Teleurac in a prison cell – the one he said was waiting for her.

Two hours into her trek, she heard voices. She ducked behind the nearest tree, pressing her body against the rough bark, and her mouth gaped open slightly when she recognized one of the voices.

"Shiny Pokemon sightings are extremely rare, but it doesn't mean that they don't exist," said Trevor.

"Well I'm not going to believe it until I see it," an unfamiliar-sounding woman with a thick Kalosian accent said in a haughty tone.

"I saw a shiny Goldeen once, but it got away before I could catch it," Shauna added. "It was really pretty!"

Serena whipped herself around, and leaned over just enough so she could see her friends. All four of them were there: Calem and Shauna side by side, Trevor and Tierno in front of them, and a bored-looking Team Flare grunt bringing up the rear. The grunt had a messenger bag slung over her shoulder, which was bulging in places. None of her friends were wearing their Pokeball belts.

"I think we've gone far enough out," said the grunt testily.

"We're not there yet," snapped Calem.

"Where is it you want to go, exactly?"

"My favorite training spot. Lots of strong wild Pokemon are there, but it's deep in the woods, and –"

"We're going to stop here, and this is where you will train."

Calem glared at the Flare grunt. "I thought you were here to protect us from Unovians and scoundrels, not boss us around. At least, that's the impression I got when Governor Teleurac said you were coming with us."

"Do _not_ talk back to me, or you won't be training your Pokemon today. Or ever again."

"This is a nice spot to train, isn't it, Calem? See, there's some Fletchling over there," Shauna said, trying to sound reassuring.

"That's not the issue, Shauna!"

"Look, if you can't handle coming out into the forest to train, we'll go back to Lumiose right now," said the grunt, exasperated.

"No!" Calem lunged at the grunt, reaching for her bag, but she stepped out of the way just in time. She plucked a Pokeball off her belt and sent out a Toxicroak.

"What are you doing? It's against the law to have your Pokemon attack us!" said Trevor fearfully.

"I am the law," stated the Flare grunt. "Toxicroak, teach that one some manners." She pointed at Calem, who slowly began to back away.

Instantly, Serena stepped out from behind the tree, pulling Noibat's Pokeball out of her pocket. "I think you're the one who needs to learn some manners," she said clearly.

Tierno and Trevor both gasped loudly when they recognized her. A large grin broke across Shauna's face, and she squealed "Serena!" When he heard Shauna, Calem looked that way and his eyes widened when he saw Serena.

"Well look who's here," sneered the Flare grunt. "I imagine I'll get a raise and a promotion for bringing you in. Toxicroak, attack her instead."

Serena tossed Noibat's Pokeball into the air, and Noibat appeared in a flash of white light. Upon seeing the Flare grunt, Noibat screeched fiercely, and Toxicroak shuddered in anticipation.

"Air Cutter!" cried Serena, and Noibat swiped his wing across to launch the attack. Air Cutter hit Toxicroak in the shoulder, sending it stumbling backwards. When Toxicroak regained its footing, the Flare grunt commanded "Use Poison Jab!" Toxicroak lunged into the air, extending one of its sharp red claws upward so it could strike Noibat. Poison Jab landed square in Noibat's chest, and Noibat was knocked backwards into a tree.

Serena waited for Noibat to resume regular flight; in the meantime, she heard her friends cheer her on with "You've got this!" and "Show her who's boss!" and "You can do it! I know you can!" She knew now that winning was her only option if she didn't want to wind up being in prison. Of course, getting this grunt to keep quiet about seeing her would be an entirely different matter.

"Super Fang, Noibat!" she commanded next. Noibat swooped in and latched his fangs onto Toxicroak's vocal sac. Toxicroak let out a guttural moan of pain; once Noibat let go and backed away, a trail of dark thick blood began to trickle down Toxicroak's front, originating from where he had bitten.

Toxicroak was now doubled over slightly, panting and perhaps close to fainting. "Use Revenge!" the Flare grunt ordered strongly. After straightening itself up, Toxicroak lunged at Noibat again, but Noibat zoomed out of the way. Toxicroak continued its attempt to attack as Noibat flew around the area; at one point Calem dove to push Shauna out of the Pokemon's way, knocking them both onto the ground. Finally, Noibat unwittingly stopped in front of the Flare grunt, and when Toxicroak moved in for the attack, he flew upwards and out of reach. As a result, Toxicroak swung its fist down onto its Trainer's head, throwing her into the ground. She let out an "Aagh!" when Toxicroak hit her, and after hitting the ground with a _thud_, she lay there motionless.

Noibat finished Toxicroak off with a final Air Cutter. Feeling it was the decent thing to do, Serena slowly approached the unconscious Flare grunt, found the Pokeball, and recalled the fainted Toxicroak.

"Serena, look!" Trevor piped up, pointing at Noibat, who was now beginning to glow. Light soon swirled around Noibat, and his body dissolved into that glowing mass of light that slowly became bigger and bigger. The mass of light soon burst open, revealing the result of Noibat's evolution.

"Oh, look at you," breathed Serena as she walked up to Noivern. "You actually look fearsome now." She couldn't help but smile.

Noivern screeched proudly, and Serena scratched him under the chin affectionately. Before she could do anything else, Tierno had tackled her and enveloped her in a hug.

"Lady S! It's so good to see you!" he exclaimed while Serena feared that he was going to crush her ribcage with the force of that hug.

"Good to see you too, Tierno," she said, returning his hug. When Tierno let go, she took turns hugging her other friends before recalling Noivern to his Pokeball. "So why do you all have a Team Flare grunt with you?"

"Apparently we're security risks, being friends with a known fugitive and all," said Calem bitterly. "And that gives them permission to – well, you saw . . . What are you doing out here?" he asked, glancing at the Flare grunt who still lay motionless on the ground. The red hairdo had now revealed itself to be a wig, hanging slightly askew and revealing dark brown locks underneath a wig cap.

"I need to get back into Lumiose," said Serena. "Teleurac has my Pokemon, and I need to get them back before he decides to attack another city in Unova."

"I knew you'd try and stop him," said Trevor affirmingly. "But you'll be caught if you get within half a kilometer of the city . . . ."

"Yeah, and now she knows you were here," said Tierno, pointing to the Flare grunt, "so they'll know you were here and on the way. And we'll have to go in for questioning _again_ – I do not like that police chief. She scares me."

"She scares everyone," muttered Serena just loud enough to be heard. She looked down at the Flare grunt again, this time really scrutinizing her appearance. A brilliant, but at the same time stupid, idea popped into her head.

"You know, this Flare grunt . . . she's about my height, and – that's a wig? Really? That makes things a lot easier," she said, crouching down to grab the Flare grunt under her armpits.

"I'll be right back, you guys. Don't go anywhere . . . and if anyone asks, tell them that your babysitter here went to drop a big one or something." Serena said as she dragged the limp Flare grunt off the path and a little deeper into the woods.

* * *

><p>The Team Flare uniform had to be made out of the least breathable fabric ever invented, Serena thought as she walked back to her friends. The glasses weren't too big, although the amount of red tinting in the lenses disoriented her at first. She practiced the walk: standing unreasonably straight, head slightly tilted with her nose in the air, arms perfectly still at her side. Her main wish was that the wig would stay on straight, and not show that there was blonde hair underneath that wig cap instead of brunette.<p>

"Is that you, Serena?" Shauna asked apprehensively as Serena came back into view. With the sunglasses on, Serena must have really looked indistinguishable from that Team Flare grunt, who was now lying under a pile of brush in Serena's old clothes. She had also left the backpack provided to her by Wulfric back there, and Noivern's Pokeball was clipped onto her belt; Toxicroak's Pokeball was in the messenger bag with her friends' belts. The grunt's wallet and Holo Caster were in her other pocket, and she dreaded the moment it beeped. She had looked inside the wallet: there were eighty thousand Pokedollars, a credit card, and the photo ID revealed that this grunt's name was Genevieve.

"It's me," said Serena. "Think I can sneak back into Lumiose like this?"

"Maybe, if you never talked," Calem reminded her.

"Oh!" Serena was silent for a moment, thinking of how well she could fake a Kalosian accent. She cleared her throat, and then tried. "I am in Team Flare! We shall rule the world! _Je suis le law!_ Look at how stylish I am in this red suit and wig!" She sounded absolutely foolish, and Trevor chuckled at her.

"You may need to practice some," he said.

"You think?" retorted Serena. She glanced back towards where she had left the unconscious Genevieve. "Um, I think we should get a move on, before she wakes up."

The five of them headed north out of the forest towards Route 3. At first, Serena talked to them using her fake Kalosian accent, in order to work on sounding like the Flare grunt as much as she could.

"How are things in the city?" she asked them.

"Not good," said Tierno.

"The day that we attacked Aspertia, another riot almost broke out," explained Calem. "All it took was trotting out the Houndoom squads to scare people back into obedience. I think the only one who wants to go to war with Unova is Teleurac."

"I guess it's a good thing he's using that massive cannon on top of Prism Tower then, instead of sending in the Kalosian Guard," said Trevor.

Serena remembered the cannon tower models she had seen in the underground facility. Teleurac must have been planning this all along, she thought.

"And we and our homes are always randomly searched, we can't call anyone outside of Kalos, or even use websites that might let us contact other regions," bemoaned Shauna. "And the latest Imagine Dragonites album got pulled off the market since it's supposed to have subversive messages in it, and there aren't any classes this semester. To overhaul the university's curriculum, or something like that."

"Hmm," intoned Serena. She had forgotten all about school.

"Before you ask, Serena, you won't be able to reach Professor Sycamore. Governor Teleurac or some other Team Flare person is always with him, wherever he goes," added Trevor.

Serena sighed. "That complicates things," she said, dropping the fake accent.

At that moment, the five of them stepped out of the forest into the open spaces of Route 3. The road before them wound down into Santalune City, with two Team Flare grunts standing at the entrance to the town. Serena cleared her throat, ignoring the tense knot forming in her chest as she looked at the grunts. Calem and Shauna linked hands and led the group onwards into town, with Serena bringing up the rear. All five of them were quiet on the way, with Serena walking with the self-assured strut typical of a Flare grunt and the other four pretending that their walking experience was as awkward as it was when there was an actual Flare grunt in their midst. The two grunts at the entrance of Santalune City merely nodded their heads at Serena in acknowledgment, and she nodded back without saying a word. She must have looked the part enough, she thought with relief.

Santalune seemed unchanged, other than the police officers posted outside the Pokemon Center, hotel, and café. Once they all passed through town and onto Route 4, Calem led them into one of the small hedge mazes past the water fountain, crouching down to conceal himself and gesturing for the others to do so.

"Serena, you said you were going to get your Pokemon back?" he asked in a hushed tone. Serena nodded in response.

"What can we do to help?" he added.

"I – I don't know if there is anything you can do to help," she said dejectedly. In truth, she didn't know if she really needed or wanted their help - it would be welcome, but finding her Pokemon was her fight, not theirs.

"Guys, I think we should start a revolution," said Tierno randomly. The others looked at him, perplexed and intrigued.

"Yeah, sure. Start a revolution if you want," agreed Serena.

"Because, I was thinking," Tierno continued, "that if you get your Pokemon back and destroy that cannon on Prism Tower, that's all you'll get done. He'll still be governor, and Team Flare will still be in control of Kalos. They can always just build another cannon and go back to blowing stuff up."

Calem nodded slowly, staring at some point in front of him as he thought about something. "But after Bleu Plaza the other day, it may be hard to get people on board."

"What happened at Bleu Plaza?" Serena asked, already having an idea of what the answer could be. She fidgeted with the wig some more.

"There was a protest that didn't end well," said Calem.

"No. We use Bleu Plaza as an example of why we need a revolution!" Tierno objected.

"A lot of students from the university have apartments in that neighborhood off Jaune Plaza, and one of them owns a café in the neighborhood. Do you think we could arrange a meeting there without being caught?" asked Shauna.

"It's worth a shot," Trevor said.

"We could at least distract the Governor long enough for Serena to sneak around and find her Pokemon," added Tierno.

"Don't any of you get in trouble for my sake," said Serena.

"We won't," Calem assured her.

There was a beat of silence.

"Well, what do you guys say? _Vive le Kalos?_" asked Tierno excitedly.

"_Vive le Kalos!"_ the others repeated after him. Afterwards, each of them exchanged looks of anticipation and uncertainty.

Of course they would want to help, Serena thought. Her friends fought Team Flare with her three years ago, so it was only logical they would feel the need to do it again. She immediately flashed to the worst case scenario in her mind, covered in bites and burns from Houndoom and behind bars – or six feet under.

She stood up slowly, looking around to see no other Team Flare members around; the only humans in sight were two awestruck preschoolers watching a group of Flabébé play in a flower patch and a gardener napping under a tree. Her eyes then gravitated towards Prism Tower, now visible on the horizon. For the first time she saw the cannon on top of it, still positioned at an angle from the vertical, and she felt a pang of terror. It would probably take all three of her Mega Evolvers to tear it down. The longer she looked at it, the larger it seemed to grow.

For a moment, what she thought of doing seemed impossible - there was a city filled with Team Flare members standing between her and her Pokemon and that cannon. Those thoughts seemed to materialize into weights which rested on her shoulders and chest, pressing against them until she had trouble breathing or thinking straight - and then she felt Shauna's hand squeezing hers. She looked at her friends, who were standing back up, and the weights disappeared. In her mind, she traded all of her thoughts of doubt and fear for confidence - the five young heroes of Kalos were ready to take on Team Flare yet again.


	22. Chapter 22

**TWENTY-TWO**

At the gate into Lumiose City, three Team Flare grunts were waiting with Mightyena and Houndoom at their sides. Serena took a deep breath when she and her friends went in – she could pull this off. Her fake accent wouldn't sound too fake, would it? Was the wig on straight, hiding all of her golden blonde tresses? What was her name supposed to be again?

"Back so soon, Genevieve?" asked one of the grunts, standing behind the reception counter and barely looking up from the tablet in front of him.

"Ah, _oui,_" said Serena in her fake accent. She gestured to her friends. "These four insisted on talking back to me at every opportunity. If I let them go ahead and train their Pokemon after that, I would be rewarding their insolence, _non_?" She sounded ridiculous, having overdone it on the _th_ sound in "their."

The other grunt nodded. "_Tu est vrai._ Are you going to escort them home for the day, then?"

"I am," Serena replied. She pushed Tierno forward roughly, and he played along by saying "Hey!" in feigned annoyance.

"Come along, you four." Serena continued, trying to sound stern. She nodded to the other grunts as she left the gate and entered Lumiose.

Once inside the city, she paused for a moment to look around. Even though it mostly looked the same, Lumiose felt completely different – or perhaps it was because it was the first time in months that she was here. Some buildings were boarded up, with windows or brick missing and signs on their front doors. There were even empty spots on street corners where a house or a shop once stood – she had known South Boulevard like the back of her hand, and the riot on Christmas Eve must have changed a thing or two. It seemed to her that there were more police officers and members of Team Flare out and about than regular civilians; they all walked up and down blocks, stood vigil at corners or in front of certain buildings. Civilians who were going about their business looked down at their feet as they walked, afraid to make eye contact with anyone. Serena watched one police officer randomly stop a teenage boy and search his person and bag, but then let him go when the only things on the boy were his lone Pokeball and some chewing gum.

And, of course, there were half a dozen Team Flare grunts posted outside of Augustine's lab.

"Let's go to my place," suggested Trevor quietly. He led the way down South Boulevard, onto North Boulevard, and onto the side street off of Jaune Plaza where his home was located. On the way there, Serena glanced around at the various Flare grunts and how they behaved around civilians, and she maintained her straight posture and nose-in-the-air facial expression, occasionally saying things to her friends such as "Pick up the pace," or "I've seen Slowpoke that move faster than you." She didn't want to be mistaken as the nice grunt, especially since she didn't know what Genevieve's rapport among her peers was. Hopefully she could lose the disguise and disappear before Genevieve showed up in town and told anyone who the imposter with Calem, Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor truly was.

"My sister's out with her boyfriend today," explained Trevor as he opened the door into their home. Once inside, Tierno headed straight for the bathroom while Calem, Shauna, and Serena stood in the entryway.

"What are you going to do now?" Shauna asked.

"Do I not need to stay with you guys?" Serena inquired, glancing over her shoulder back into the street.

"No. Escorts are for only if we need to leave town," responded Calem. "But, um . . . I would like my Pokemon back, now."

"Oh, yeah! Sorry!" Serena opened the messenger bag on her shoulder and pulled out a belt with six Pokeballs attached to it. She handed it to Calem before fishing out Shauna's, then Trevor's, then Tierno's. One Pokeball was left in the bottom of the bag.

"And that leaves her Toxicroak," she said, pulling out the ball and holding it in front of her. Noivern's Pokeball was on her belt, in Toxicroak's appointed spot.

"I'll take it," offered Trevor. "If anyone asks, I found it abandoned in the woods – but I don't plan on letting it out after I've healed it." He took the ball from Serena, and then looked long and hard at her. "You could just hide out here if you wanted," he offered.

"What if your home is one that is randomly searched today?" asked Serena.

Tierno returned from the bathroom, and he received his Pokeball belt back from Serena gratefully.

"I guess I'll be on my way then," said Serena, reaching for the doorknob. Before she grabbed it, Shauna threw her arms around Serena's shoulders.

"Be careful, please," pleaded Shauna. All Serena could do was nod and hug her friend back.

When Shauna detached herself and stepped back, Serena took final looks at each of her friends. She had chosen them well – they might not have been the best or most dedicated Trainers (besides Calem) but she could count on them, and she told herself to do whatever it took to keep them out of harm's way.

"Good luck," said Calem, looking determined.

"Same to you," she said as she opened the door. "_Vive le Kalos."_

* * *

><p>Serena's next stop was a clothing store known for offering the season's fashions at affordable prices. There, she picked up a new set of clothes: a mauve top, a black pleather jacket with pockets deep enough to hold a Pokeball, dark blue skinny jeans, the lace-up boots which were the only shoes she could possibly run in since all the others had ridiculous heels on them, a watch, a pair of wide-frame sunglasses, new socks, new underwear, a slouch beanie, and a set of hair ties. The sales clerk seemed confused as to why there was a Flare grunt in her shop: "Most of your, erm, coworkers like to shop at more upscale places, don't they?" she had asked while bagging Serena's items.<p>

"I suppose. Boutique Couture is very stylish, but they are so expensive," Serena responded, still speaking with a Kalosian accent. "How much do I owe you?" she asked.

The sales clerk chuckled nervously. "A member of Team Flare paying for something . . . that's unheard of."

Serena bit the inside of her lip. She must have broken character by even coming into this store, and apparently by wanting to pay for her purchase. Naturally Team Flare would want things for free, she thought with resentment.

"I'm feeling generous today," she said coyly, opening Genevieve's wallet and pulling out twenty thousand Pokedollars, which she had estimated how much all of her items would cost. "Keep the change. I'm in a hurry."

* * *

><p>In a South Boulevard alleyway, Serena changed out of her Team Flare disguise into the clothing she had bought, and she pulled her hair back into one long braid. The Flare uniform was stuffed into the shopping bag and tossed into a nearby dumpster, and as she threw it in, Serena noticed a flyer had been thrown in there. She leaned in to pull it out, and saw that the flyer was advertising a special event at Friseur Furfrou that occurred the previous week.<p>

"Are you all right?"

Serena jumped when she heard someone call out to her. She stepped back, pulling Noivern's Pokeball out of her jacket pocket and clutching it tight. However, when she recognized who it was, she relaxed slightly, although her heart still pounded.

"Is that you, Bernard?" she asked apprehensively. It looked like him all right, with his dark complexion and the crescent-shaped scar on his cheek that he got from being bitten by a Houndour.

"Yeah," said Bernard. He was standing at the entrance to the alleyway, and he took a couple of steps forward, moving closer to her. "Who are you, and how do you – _no_ . . . ." Bernard gasped, his eyes growing wider the longer he looked at her.

"Surprise! I'm back in town!" said Serena quietly, throwing her hands in the air. "But, um, how are you doing?"

"I'm all right, I suppose. Um, I got caught with my Pokemon, so I was forced to help Team Flare with some experiments they were doing involving Mega Evolution and renewable energy, but Professor Sycamore decided my Medicham wasn't worthy to continue testing, so I was let go, but I still have to go see Chief Renshaw once a week," said Bernard, his voice trembling when he mentioned Renshaw.

"Wait a minute . . . you've been working with the Professor?" asked Serena. Her curiosity was piqued, both for Augustine's well-being and for whatever Bernard was doing with him.

Bernard nodded. "I was actually about to go visit him. He's at his lab today, for once."

Serena smiled suddenly, but then it faded as she remembered all of the Flare grunts posted outside the lab. She was silent for a moment, looking from Bernard down to the ground, and then to the Friseur Furfrou flyer that was still in her hand. There was a brown stain on the flyer, probably from some of the other trash in the dumpster.

"If you're going to see him – wait, first, do you have a pen?" she asked.

"Um, yes," said Bernard, pulling a pen out of his pocket and handing it to her. Serena ripped off a piece of the flyer and held it against the wall, and she wrote on it: _I'm in Lumiose. Meet me somewhere soon? –S.C._

She folded up the paper and handed it to Bernard, along with his pen. "Deliver this note to him, please, and don't leave without a response. Give it directly to him, and don't let anyone else see or hear about it. I'll be waiting here, behind that dumpster."

"Sure. I can do that." Bernard said as he put the note in his pocket.

"Thank you so much," said Serena gratefully. Bernard turned and left the alleyway, and Serena crouched behind the dumpster, putting on her hat and sunglasses. An hour went by, which she spent by thinking about Augustine. She would see him again soon, hug him more intensely and affectionately than a Goodra could, tousle that magnificent hair of his, kiss him fiercely – and he would more than happily show her where her Pokemon were. If he was being paraded around as a member of Team Flare by Teleurac, then surely he would be privy to all of the organization's secrets and information.

Bernard returned at the end of the hour, finding Serena and handing her Augustine's response, which was written on the same scrap of paper:

_My office. Midnight tonight. Can't wait to see you. XOXO –A.S._

She smiled in relief, and laughed. Nobody signed anything with "XOXO" anymore.

"Um, Governor Teleurac was in the lobby with Professor Sycamore, but I slipped it to him when he wasn't looking. Both of them went up to the Professor's office together, but he came down by himself to give the note back to me. He must have found a good time to read it and respond."

Serena nodded in understanding. Augustine must have been sneakier than she thought.

"Thank you again, Bernard. I don't know how I can repay you," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You can start by doing something about that weapon on Prism Tower. I don't want a war with Unova."

* * *

><p>Serena originally planned to wait in that alley until midnight, but her stomach soon growled in hunger. Using the alleys and side roads connected with one another, she made her way back to Jaune Plaza, to the hole-in-the-wall known as Café Étudie. It was a small, cramped establishment: a popular hangout for students and young adults who considered larger, more commercially successful cafes in the city too "mainstream" for their taste.<p>

She wasn't the only one wearing sunglasses indoors, which eased her mind slightly as she looked around the café from her small corner booth. A group of young men in a booth were wearing sunglasses as well, and a couple passing by wrinkled their noses at the men in the booth and said something along the lines of "how pretentious" and "wannabe sellouts." At least there wasn't anyone in a police uniform or a garish red suit inside the café.

"Um, do you mind if I stay here until you close?" she asked when the waiter brought her a sandwich and coffee. "I mean, I'll keep buying food and drinks. I'm just trying to kill time until tonight."

"Sure," answered the waiter.

That midmorning sandwich began what felt like the longest day of Serena's life, dragging out longer than the days she spent training her team for the Pokemon League three years ago. To her, it felt like twenty minutes had gone by, but a look at the clock would show that only four had passed. She soon imagined that instead of this establishment, she was at Café Soleil with Augustine, flashing back to when he first introduced her to the Gible that was now his beloved Garchomp. She then imagined that they were discussing what kind of condo or apartment they were going to buy or rent out – if nothing had gone wrong in their lives, they would probably be moving in together right now, she thought longingly.

Starting at two in the afternoon, she switched to drinking water instead of coffee; the caffeine was giving her a headache, and she lay her head down on the table as she waited for it to go away. At three o'clock, a group of three youths came in and sat in the booth in front of hers, talking about leaving Lumiose in favor of the Kalosian countryside, just in case Unova decided to attack the city with equal or greater force than what Aspertia had received. One of them suggested petitioning Teleurac to stop the fighting, and they all wondered if it was true that there were Trainers in Unova that rode fearsome Dragon-types, and if they would come to Kalos. The names of the Pokemon – Reshiram and Zekrom – were mentioned with fear-inspired reverence.

At three thirty, Serena noticed that Tierno, Shauna, and Calem had entered the café and went straight to the counter. She watched them talk to the barista, who then went to go get the manager. Tierno spoke to the manager quietly, and from her vantage point, Serena couldn't hear what he was saying. The manager seemed surprised at first, but then intrigued by the conversation, and then she nodded her head fervently in response. With a "_Merci!_ See you then!" Tierno and the others turned to leave. As they passed her, Serena let out a "Psst," which caught their attention, perplexed as they were. She lowered her sunglasses slightly to make full eye contact with them, and then they scrambled over to where she was sitting.

"What's going on?" she asked as the three of them sat down at the booth with her.

"We're having a meeting here tonight," whispered Tierno excitedly. "The manager said she'd spread the word to anyone who might be interested – the authorities usually don't come here, you see, and she claims to be able to spot anyone who's undercover. Trevor had to go back to work, but he's going to talk up as many people at the lab as he can about coming."

"I bet the 'masked heroes of Kalos' will make an appearance," said Serena with a chuckle. "What time is it at?"

"Midnight," said Calem.

"Ooh . . . I'm meeting someone then."

"Someone who can help you?" asked Shauna.

"That's right," answered Serena. "Now, if anyone asks about me tonight, feed them a bogus story. I'm, um, on my way back out of Lumiose to find Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde. I'm also hoping that, say, Lugia and Ho-Oh magically appear to help me. Arceus is on my side too. I'll have a whole army of legendary Pokemon."

"Sounds good and reasonably preposterous," said Calem. He wriggled his way out of the booth and looked at Shauna and Tierno expectantly. "We're going out to talk to the Gym Leaders, Elite Four, and Diantha about joining us. Well, except Malva, of course."

"Great! Good luck," said Serena. Shauna and Tierno clamored out of the booth and joined Calem's side.

She watched as her friends left the café, acting like they didn't know the person they just spoke to very well – Shauna had waved briefly, though. Over the next few hours, Serena ordered a pasta dish for dinner and slowly ate it, one bite every ten minutes or so. It felt like there was a weight in her stomach, destroying her appetite, and growing bigger and bigger as the time drew closer to midnight. At seven o'clock that evening, the light fixtures dimmed and the barista put out a sign at the register informing customers that there was now a reduced menu during curfew hours. That was when a police officer entered the café and informed the staff to watch out for any suspicious activity. Assuming that Genevieve had reappeared in town finally, Serena waited until the police officer left before rolling up her braid and tucking it into her hat.

The café closed at nine. Serena left calmly, but then dashed into side road that would deliver her back to South Boulevard via the long way. The long way was not a problem; she had three hours to kill and authorities to avoid. She eventually reached the alley on South Boulevard where she had encountered Bernard, and she crouched behind the dumpster, removing her sunglasses and setting them down on the ground.

Clouds obstructed the moon and stars from shining their light upon Lumiose. The city had felt eerie before, back when the curfews on energy use had been imposed, but now Serena did not have words to describe precisely how unreal it felt to be here, in the dark cold alleyway, waiting for midnight to come. She had to strain her eyes to see the time display on her watch. The temperature was dropping, and she stuffed her hands in her pockets to keep them warm. She debated letting Noivern out to listen for oncoming people or Pokemon, but decided against it; there wasn't a good place for him to hide, and he probably wouldn't hold still or keep quiet anyway.

She froze, holding her breath, as sirens went off out on the street. What followed was the _crash_ of a door bursting open, people shouting, and a Furfrou barking. One sentence, screamed out, resonated with Serena: "She's not here! I swear!"

What could she do? What _ought_ she do? She could appear before them, save those people from whatever punishment awaited them and lead the authorities on a chase, but run the risk of not making it to Augustine's lab on time. Noivern may have been able to handle one Toxicroak, but he couldn't handle multiple members of Team Flare or the police force.

_Her friends!_ It was good that Calem, Shauna, and Tierno were planning on leaving the city, but what about Trevor? Would he be caught with the Flare grunt's Toxicroak? And how much trouble would they be in, even if they pretended to not know that they returned to Lumiose with an imposter?

People soon stopped shouting at one another, although the sirens kept blaring and that Furfrou kept barking. The sirens moved away, and guilt began to creep up on Serena. She should have done something . . . .

* * *

><p>Eleven fifty-two. Eight minutes to go. Serena pulled herself up onto stiff legs and cautiously left the alley. A police officer went down South Boulevard, mounted on a Gogoat for his patrol. She waited for him to pass before sprinting across the boulevard. On the other side, she could see the gate out to Route 4 several yards ahead of her, but everything past that was covered in the shadow of a starless night.<p>

Serena kept moving. She kept her head down, and her hands in her pockets, but she glanced out and around her every few seconds. Looking over her shoulder would seem suspicious, but what if she was being followed? She paused for a moment, stopping abruptly, but she didn't hear another set of halting footsteps behind her. Assuming it was safe, she kept going, moving briskly.

There may have been Team Flare grunts posted outside the lab earlier that day, but they were all gone now. Serena still turned left when she reached the lab, going around to the side door that was framed by ivy. In the dark, she ran her hand along the wall until her touch was met by smooth, cool vines rather than rough bricks. The wood door came next, and Serena traced the wood panels to find the doorknob; luckily, the door was not locked.

She slowly pushed the door open and tiptoed inside. Since the view before her was pitch black, she had no means of identifying where she was. Reaching her hand out to her side helped her find the wall, and she walked forward while keeping her fingertips in contact with the wall. Coming up, yet still seemingly far away, was a faint glowing something. Serena walked a little faster, feeling plush carpet under her feet and approaching that glowing something until she bumped into a counter at the level of her waist.

It was only the computer at the receptionist's desk. The monitor's screen was a soft blue, signifying that it was on standby for the evening.

This must be the lobby, Serena thought. She glanced over her shoulder, in the direction that the front doors ought to be, before reaching her arm out again and finding the wall. Following the wall behind the receptionist's desk took her to the elevator booth, and her fingers slid over the button once or twice before she finally pressed it.

The elevator doors slid open, making a noise that Serena considered far too loud to be reasonable. She stepped inside, and the first things to catch her eye were the little circular buttons that were giving off a faint orange light. Serena pressed "3," the doors closed, and the elevator began its ascent.


	23. Chapter 23

**TWENTY-THREE**

As the elevator doors opened, Serena's eyes were immediately greeted by the lights in the office (somewhat blinding to her even though only half of the light fixtures were turned on) and a tall, slender figure in a long red coat practically flying around the office's partition. She took a step forward and stopped to process that this _was_ Augustine standing before her, his face seeming more handsome than ever – it may have been that she hadn't seen him in two months, or it may have been the wide grin and the way the lines and skin crinkled around his joy-filled eyes. Her heart fluttered, and without a second thought, she ran towards him and jumped so that she could throw her arms around his neck. He hugged her back, arms around her so tight that it felt like he was trying to press the two of them together to form one body.

He said her name softly, and cupped the back of her head with his hand. She wanted to look in his eyes again and kiss him, but his arms would not budge whenever she tried to wiggle loose.

"I missed you so much," she said. Had his cologne always smelled so good, or his hair been so soft under her fingers? When was the last time she had a proper shower – how did she smell to him?

"I missed you more," Augustine shot back as he clutched her hat and pulled it off her head, letting her braid fall freely down her back.

"You finally got an article of clothing to match your socks," joked Serena. Augustine chortled sadly, and he tightened his grip on her and gently started rocking her from side to side, burying his face in the crook between her neck and shoulder.

The two of them stood like that for a few moments, Serena closing her eyes and allowing herself to be lost in this moment. How scared she had been, watching that Flare Admin grab him and drag him away and being powerless to stop it – and here he was, seemingly unscathed. More than before, she believed things were going to be all right.

She heard Augustine mutter something in Kalosian. "What was that?"

Augustine relaxed his arms and pushed back so that the two of them could properly look at each other. "Nothing, _chérie_. I'm just so happy you're safe." He leaned his head forward and kissed her.

"Me too," said Serena airily after the kiss ended. Spending the winter in the wilderness had left her lips dry and chapped, or maybe they just felt that way because his were soft as always. She noticed that a single tear was trickling down his cheek.

"Crying? You're such a sappy dork," she chided him, leaning back in to kiss his cheek.

"I'm _your_ sappy dork, Serena. Don't ever forget it . . . . Did you just want to come visit me before you continued your life as a fugitive?" he asked her, sliding his arms away. His hands grabbed her shoulders and glided down her arms until they found her hands, and he held them.

"No," answered Serena. She just felt so _rough_ compared to him; perhaps she should have bought some lotion and lip balm while she was out earlier, if only so that Augustine could have smoother hands to hold and softer lips to kiss.

"You're not thinking about turning yourself in, are you?" Augustine continued, his tone a mix between jest and genuine concern.

"Why would I do that? I can't get my Pokemon back while I'm in prison," scoffed Serena.

"Of course you can't. Which is why I have them here now. _Venez avec moi_," said Augustine, walking backwards and leading her along with him. However, Serena broke free from his hold on her and dashed around the partition. There it was, on his desk: her Pokeball belt, the initials "S.C." engraved on the buckle, and all five Pokeballs affixed to where they should be. Her Mega Ring lay on the desk next to the belt. She gazed upon them for a moment, feeling like she had found a missing body part.

The first thing Serena did was pluck off the first Pokeball and send out its occupant: Greninja. Since Greninja was not much of a hugger, Serena stuck to stroking his head affectionately. "How are you, my friend?" she asked Greninja, who responded with happy bubbly croaks. She smiled widely, and her starter Pokemon was definitely a sight for sore eyes.

She left Greninja out while she greeted Meowstic next. Although Meowstic usually maintained a stoic countenance, she smiled slightly upon seeing Serena and let out a high-pitched "Mrreww!" Serena scratched Meowstic under her chin for a moment, and she was unable to control the big, stupid grin on her face. Two out of five, unharmed – not bad so far.

Next came Charizard. The large Fire-type roared excitedly when she saw her Trainer. Serena wrapped her arms around her Pokemon's neck for a hug, and she felt some of the heat coming from the fire on Charizard's tail. There was no sign of ill treatment on Charizard, and her Charizardite still hung on a pendant around her neck.

Lucario, who was perhaps more stoic than Meowstic, nodded to Serena in greeting. He still had his Lucarionite pendant, and Serena scratched him behind the ears to display affection. Before she reached for her final Pokeball – Ampharos – she glanced up at Augustine. He was leaning against the partition, watching her and her Pokemon, with a small, sad smile. She looked in his eyes to try to figure out what he was feeling – they were unreadable to her.

She let Ampharos out of her Pokeball. Ampharos bleated merrily, her face lit up with a smile, and she held her arms up towards Serena, who crouched down to hug her Pokemon. The first thing Serena noticed about Ampharos was that there two small bumps on her head, made of scar tissue.

"What happened to you?" she asked, looking at Augustine. "They – they didn't – did they?" She didn't want to think about how those scars were made.

"I saved her at the very last minute," said Augustine, somber and soft. Now, she could see in his eyes that something was troubling him, and his lip quivered slightly. She stood up and crossed the floor to meet him, pressing her hand against his cheek.

"Thank you. So much . . . you're just wonderful."

Augustine shook his head. "No. I'm not wonderful. Serena, I've been letting Teleurac boss me around, I've been doing his bidding without question to make my own life slightly easier, so I could be in one piece as I waited for you to come back. I've been a doormat, and I've done things that I can never be forgiven for –"

"Stop it, Augustine." Serena stroked her thumb across his cheek. "The way I see it, you have a chance to redeem yourself now."

He smiled faintly. "Wherever you go, I'll follow. I will help you in whatever you pursue, and we will never be separated again."

"Damn right we won't," agreed Serena. "That reminds me," she pulled away from him and turned to face her Pokemon, who had been watching her and Augustine patiently. "You five need to meet your newest teammate."

With a swift motion, she grabbed the Pokeball in her pocket and sent out Noivern. Flapping his wings to hover in one spot, Noivern surveyed his new surroundings, chirping to greet each Pokemon as Serena introduced them – and then he saw Augustine and began to shriek angrily.

"Noivern STOP!" Serena lunged between Noivern and Augustine, preventing the Dragon-type from swooping forward or launching an Air Slash at him. She held her arms out in front of her, palms open.

"Where'd you find this one?" asked Augustine, his voice trembling. Serena glanced over her shoulder to see him pressed against the partition, hands in front of his face.

"Terminus Cave," answered Serena. "Sorry, I don't think he likes Team Flare very much. Either that or he has a thing about the color red . . . Noivern, this is Augustine. We like him. He's on our side."

Almost as if it was on cue, Ampharos waddled over to Augustine and hugged him. Noivern watched this, and the aggression in his eyes dissolved. Serena smiled warmly at Noivern, and then recalled him to his Pokeball. She recalled all of her Pokemon, clipped the six Pokeballs to her belt, affixed the belt around her hips, and then slipped the Mega Ring onto her wrist.

"You were at Terminus Cave?" asked Augustine curiously. Serena nodded, then told him about what she saw and did in the cave, including how she met Noivern when he was a Noibat and how they barely escaped being caved in with the rest of Team Flare. As she talked, she slowly walked up to him until only a foot of space separated them. She ended by confessing that she never saw Zygarde with her own eyes.

"Nobody in Team Flare has seen it since, so don't worry. I believe Zygarde has either fled deeper into the cave or is using its ability to camouflage itself to avoid detection," said Augustine when she finished talking. He glanced at his watch. "Erm, what else happened while you were out there on your own?"

There would be time for storytelling later, Serena thought testily. Right now, they needed to get a move on. Nonetheless, she indulged him and told him about the time she spent in the Pokemon Village with Wulfric and the other Pokemon.

"Have you heard anything about Wulfric in the past couple of days?" Serena finished with that question. If Wulfric had gotten into trouble on her behalf, she would never forgive herself.

"No," answered Augustine. He glanced at his watch again, then hardened his face.

"Is there anything else you want to discuss? Or can we go now?"

"Ah, _ma chérie,_ you are so impatient." Augustine reached out, grabbed her around the waist, and pulled her closer to him. Serena's hands flew up to rest on his chest, her fingers sliding slightly on the silk black dress shirt he wore under his coat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw on her watch that it was twelve fourteen.

"We'll have plenty of time later, to catch up and recover and celebrate our victory," she said, throwing in a small suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "Not that these past fifteen minutes or so haven't been the highlight of my new year so far –"

"Yes. Let's go now," said Augustine hurriedly. His hands slid up from her waist to her back and shoulders. He leaned in, pressing his lips against hers in a passionate kiss. She kissed him back, deepening the motion, running her hands and fingers through his hair and down the back of his neck while his arms pressed her harder and closer to his body. Serena treated this kiss as if it were for good luck, but Augustine was kissing and holding her with such passion and intensity, as if the two of them would never kiss again after tonight and he wanted to pour everything he had into this.

Augustine broke away slowly, keeping his arms around her, and gazed deeply into her eyes as if there was more he wanted to say – _needed_ to say – but couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he turned his head away and let his hands find hers, letting go of one and keeping hold of the other so he could lead her to the elevator.

* * *

><p>"What's your plan?" inquired Augustine as the elevator doors opened to the first floor. He used his Holo Caster's display to provide them with a scant amount of light.<p>

"I was thinking about Mega Evolving Charizard and then flying up to Prism Tower," said Serena, lacking confidence in a plan she devised on the elevator ride down. "She could probably breathe fire hot enough to weaken whatever has the cannon bolted to the tower, and I could send out Lucario to finish breaking it."

"Perhaps Garchomp could help," said Augustine as he moved to the front entrance of the lab's lobby, pulling her along with him.

"Definitely . . . Augustine, shouldn't we go out the side door? What if we're seen?" she asked him, slowing down her pace and forcing him to slow down as well.

"There are hardly any patrols out and about at this hour," he assured her. "And if we're flying, does it really matter which door we use?"

Serena shook her head. It didn't seem right to her that they went out the front, but Augustine had been an official member of Team Flare for months now. He had been privy to more information than before, which likely included street patrols. With her free hand, she grabbed Charizard's Pokeball, rotating it in her sweating palm. This was it, she thought nervously as her heart pounded and her insides tensed up to the point that she felt like vomiting. There was perhaps only one shot at this, and it concerned her that Augustine hadn't suggested an alternate plan.

The two of them exited the lab and walked down the stairs onto South Boulevard. Serena raised her hand to release Charizard, but before she could, she saw the white flashes that accompanied Pokemon being loosed from their Pokeballs. Half a dozen Houndoom were now standing before her, with Team Flare Admins standing behind them. Soon, more Flare Admins appeared and sent out their Pokemon so that she was completely surrounded: Manectric, Clawitzer, Mightyena, Emolga, and Diggersby.

One Admin stepped forward from behind the line of Houndoom, a cocky triumphant smile on his face. "Good work, Professor! We'll take it from here."

Serena whipped her head around and looked at him in horror. "What?" she gasped, her mouth hanging open slightly. Augustine merely hung his head, refusing to look her in the eye, and he stepped away from her. She shook her head frantically, trying to process what the Admin had said – and its implications – but she forced herself to snap out of it when a Houndoom pounced at her. She ducked, allowing the Houndoom to fly clear over her head, then sent out Charizard. Charizard roared fiercely at Team Flare and their Pokemon, then allowed Serena to climb onto her back before beginning her ascent.

Three Emolga flew up after Charizard, but she drove them all away with a Fire Blast. "Go to the tower!" Serena whispered frantically into Charizard's ear. As Charizard reared back in preparation to fly as fast as she could, a blast of scalding hot water from a Clawitzer on the ground below struck her stomach, sending her reeling back and forcing Serena to hang on for dear life as the two of them rolled and somersaulted through the air chaotically, losing altitude. Some of the hot water had splashed onto Serena, not enough to burn but just enough to hurt slightly.

Charizard tried to regain the lost altitude as she flapped her wings laboriously, but all of hope of that happening was lost as another blast of water hit her in the side of the head. The Fire-type fell back to earth; Serena jumped off, recalling Charizard to her Pokeball in midair, and then she landed hard on her back. Team Flare and their Pokemon were only ten yards away, but the Houndoom were already charging towards her.

She clamored to her feet and ran for it. Her head swam, jarred from hitting the ground, and her shoulders and tailbone still hurt. She turned into the nearest alley and wound through the spaces and side roads between buildings and houses, trying to put as much distance between herself and the terrifying howls of the Houndoom as she could.

The path she was on led her to Estival Avenue, dark and deserted except for the flashing red and blue lights given off by police vehicles that came barreling down the street. Serena sidled against a wall, waiting for the cars to pass, before ducking her head out to see if anyone was coming. Her heart was hammering in her chest, she was out of breath, her back still ached in places, and she didn't know where to start looking for a means to heal Charizard. On top of that, Augustine had some explaining to do. If she could get out of here at all, it would be a miracle.

Seeing that the street was now deserted, Serena sprinted across, hoping to make it to the next side road as quickly as possible. However, she soon heard the cries of Emolga over her head, followed by the buzzing and crackling of electricity. Thunder Wave hit her from above, sending a weak jolt of electricity through her body and knocking her to the ground. She lay motionless on her stomach, her arms and legs throbbing dully. No matter how hard she tried, her arms and legs would not move or even twitch voluntarily.

Panic finally settled in – the kind of panic that kept her from thinking straight, from even recognizing what exactly was happening. A big black van flanked by police cars converge on her location, which pulled to a stop just a few feet away from her paralyzed, sprawled-out form. Two Flare Admins stepped out of the van, and one of them sent out a Machoke.

"Machoke, it's her naptime," said the Admin as she pointed at Serena. Machoke lumbered towards Serena, then raised up a fist with the intention of swinging it down on Serena's head.

"STOP!" came another voice from the van. Augustine ran forward, lunging in front of Machoke, and looked down at Serena uncertainly.

"Professor, what are you doing?" asked the Admin.

"We can put her out, but I doubt the Governor wants her to suffer any brain damage," Augustine said to the Admin. He then sent out Venusaur.

"A-Aug-sine . . . ." said Serena weakly, her tongue barely able to move. She looked at him, nonverbally expressing her desperation and pleading with her eyes. This was a plan within a plan within a plan, right? It had to be.

"Venusaur, use Sleep Powder," ordered Augustine, his voice filled with resignation.

The next thing Serena knew, Venusaur had sprayed a heavy powder upon her, one that smelled like lavender and chamomile. Her eyes slammed shut immediately, and the world around her that had been filled with the sounds of the Flare Admins and their Pokemon fell silent.


	24. Chapter 24

**TWENTY-FOUR**

_Earlier that day . . . ._

Augustine was starting to wonder when it would be a good time to take a bathroom break. Teleurac would go with him, of course, but he would be standing outside the stall while the Professor pretended to answer nature's call. It was hard to focus on the topic of discussion in front of them when he was consumed with a burning curiosity about the note Bernard had slipped to him. Who sent it? What did it say? What did they want? At the same time, it was hard not to get his hopes up.

"Professor, how do you pronounce this word here?" Teleurac was sitting at Augustine's desk, reclining back in the lone chair and reading a paper that had been written four years ago. Augustine leaned over the Governor's shoulder and saw the word in question.

"Virtumultite," said Augustine, carefully enunciating each syllable.

"Good, thank you. If I'm reading this correctly, it's believed that this substance could allow one to Mega Evolve multiple Pokemon at a time? Also, could I borrow a pen?"

Augustine began digging through his pockets. Surely there was a pen in there somewhere. "According to ancient accounts of the war three millennia ago, elite soldiers decorated their armor with this stone, and yes, they managed multiple Mega Evolutions. King AZ also incorporated it in his great weapon. And after the war its use was banned because – _merde."_ He found a pen, but pulled it out so swiftly that the other contents of the pocket flew out as well: a box of mints, some rubber bands, and the note Bernard had handed to him.

"What's this?" asked Teleurac as he saw the folded-up scrap of paper fall to the floor. He bent down to pick it up.

"It's just – sir –" It was too late. Teleurac had already unfolded the note and held it up to his face so he could read it.

He laughed jubilantly, very pleased by something. "Before I send you out with a team to collect some virtumultite, I have another assignment for you. To be completed posthaste." Still keeping a satisfied smile on his face, Teleurac handed the note to Augustine to read.

_I'm in Lumiose. Meet me somewhere soon? –S.C._

Augustine's mouth gaped open. That was her handwriting all right. He felt relieved briefly: this meant that she had survived this long, and was perhaps planning something, or at the very least wanted to see him. Then he realized what Teleurac would want him to do.

"No. I'm not doing it."

"I don't recall _asking_ you what you wanted . . . and you're not in much of a position to refuse," said Teleurac authoritatively.

"Then send me to prison. I'm not helping you capture her."

Teleurac let out a soft, menacing chuckle. "How cute, thinking you can bargain with me . . . tell me, Augustine, has your Charizard ever received any proper medical care after that unfortunate incident a few days ago? No? I could secure it for you. I could send Charizard to someone who specializes in Pokemon neurosurgery, who lives in Dendemille and won't ask questions . . . or, your other Pokemon could suffer the same fate and _none_ of them will ever see so much as an Oran Berry again for the rest of their lives."

Augustine closed his mouth into a thin-lipped grimace. He crossed his arms across his chest, remaining conscious of how his hands shook in fear and anger and hatred. It seemed impossible to him: he promised himself to never let any of his Pokemon go through what Charizard went through, but could he definitively decide if they were more important than Serena, or Serena more important than them? And damn Teleurac to the deepest bowels of hell for making him choose . . . yet did he really want some other members of Team Flare, such as Malva or the scientists, put in charge of the hunt for Serena?

"I'll tell her to come here at midnight," he said with a sigh.

"Very well," said Teleurac. "Keep her for fifteen minutes, to give us enough time to prepare a trap, and to lull her into a false sense of security. Having her Pokemon present will also add a nice touch, but we won't let her get too far with them."

* * *

><p>She was still running, her feet slamming into the pavement repeatedly, aching but not daring to stop for anything. Behind her, she heard the howls and barks of the Houndoom that were in pursuit, and the sounds of police sirens somewhere in the distance. The next turn she took led her to a dead end, but by the time she stopped and turned back, the Houndoom had arrived. One Houndoom, the leader of the pack, stepped forward, let loose its horrible howl, and pounced –<p>

Serena awoke abruptly. She jolted up into a sitting position, gasping for air, and she soon registered that she was no longer in an alleyway but rather a small, cold cell. Her captors had brought her here and laid her out on a thin sleeping mat. The door to the cell was only five feet away, barred by an electric force field, and from her position she couldn't see what was outside.

She reached up to wipe a bead of sweat off her brow – her hands worked again, she realized, and the Mega Ring was still around her wrist. Briefly rolling her ankles showed that feeling had returned to her lower half as well. Her Pokeball belt was still fastened on top of her hips, but no Pokeballs were attached to it.

"Good morning, sleepyhead."

Someone on the other side of her cell spoke in a condescending tone. Serena slowly got to her feet and walked to the door of her cell – Teleurac was there, holding a black sack in his hand and wearing a self-assured, delighted smirk on his face.

Serena gave him an icy glare.

"It's good to see you again, Serena. And now that you're here, I have something to show you." Teleurac said next. He leaned over to a control panel, input a six-digit code, and the force field on the cell door vanished instantly. From the black sack, Teleurac pulled out a pair of shiny silver handcuffs, which he used to shackle Serena's wrists together. Finally, he pulled a Pokeball out of the sack and sent out an Abra.

Serena remained silent as Teleurac grabbed her arm, told the Abra to Teleport them ("Shiny Flying Litwick") and was subjected to the nauseating, compressing feeling of being transported. When the world rematerialized around her, she instantly recognized the large room with the glass circular chamber in the middle. The chamber had all of its glass panels intact, and it was filled with thick, swirling glowing green gas. A low, vibrating, mechanical hum filled Serena's ears, and it sounded like it originated from this chamber. Pipes ran along the ceiling, leading from the top of the chamber down along the walls and further into the ground.

Along one section of wall was a tall red screen, extending all the way to the ceiling; in front of this screen was a panel covered with buttons and knobs, and the screen's display read "NEXT LAUNCH in 10:36:24 – TARGET CASTELIA CITY" with the seconds ticking down. Celosia, Bryony, and Aliana stood in front of the screen, talking about something, until they saw Teleurac; then, they snapped to attention.

"I've already seen your device," snapped Serena. The three scientists were currently the only other people in the room – where was Augustine? He had better be hiding somewhere in shame, she thought angrily.

"Yes, but you didn't see it while it was fully operational," said Teleurac. He pulled her along as he walked closer to the circular chamber. "See that green gas? All of that is energy we have extracted from Pokemon. Don't grimace at me like that, Serena. You have a scientific mind, don't you? You ought to appreciate this . . . all the molecules in the gas react with one another, giving off heat as they do. There is a bit of radiation generated as well. The heated gas is then conducted upwards, activating the turbines we built into Prism Tower."

"And then those turbines generate electricity needed to power your doomsday device?" Serena couldn't take her eyes off the green gas inside the chamber. Watching swirling tendrils move around cloud-like forms mesmerized her – she thought about what was happening at the molecular level that affected the shape the gas took, but then one burst of gas formed a shape that resembled a skull. She wondered how many Pokemon were needed to make this happen, and how many smaller reactors such as this one were hidden throughout Lumiose, providing energy without anyone knowing where it came from.

There was a sign posted on one of the glass panels: yellow, bearing the symbol that warned of radioactive matter, and a caption that read "CAUTION."

"It's not just a doomsday device," snapped Teleurac.

"What else could it be? You're going to fire at Castelia in less than eleven hours, aren't you?"

Teleurac took a deep breath, then exhaled loudly. "Do you know why we're at war, Serena? Unova has forced my hand. The world is in danger of being ruined, and it is not fair if only Kalos benefits from my efforts to change things for the better while the rest are left in their filth. President Oria does not understand that. She would rather allow her people to continue on the path to self-destruction in the name of 'individual freedom.' With her and Castelia City out of the way, I can help Unova save themselves, and they can take their place in our beautiful future."

"What about the innocent people living in Castelia City? They won't get to be part of your future," Serena pointed out. Nothing the man said could be more shocking or horrifying than what she had already seen or heard from him.

"If President Oria surrenders control of Unova to me by eight o'clock tonight, before that countdown hits zero, then they will," said Teleurac. "But as far as I'm concerned, the state of affairs in that city is all the fault of those innocent people you speak of."

"I'm assuming that you'll eventually extend this same courtesy to Sinnoh, Hoenn, Johto, and Kanto?"

Teleurac smirked. "Naturally. This is not a doomsday device, Serena. It is a tool of salvation."

Serena swallowed hard, but it did nothing to assuage the lump in her throat. "Why did you show me this?" she asked him, looking to see if there were any loose wires or pipes between the chamber, the floor or the ceiling – none were in sight.

"Because you and your Pokemon will help make the future happen. Your Charizard, Lucario, and Ampharos – Mega Evolve them, and they have more power to offer."

"No. I may be your prisoner now, but I'll cut my own hands off before I Mega Evolve my Pokemon for you." Serena said indignantly.

Teleurac chuckled. "It's not just those three that will participate. Your Meowstic and Greninja will have energy extracted from them too – and so will that Noivern of yours. It's a shame that their Trainer doesn't care enough about them to make sure they are well taken care of between procedures. Your refusal means abandoning them to small, crowded cages where they wallow in their own waste and live out their lives in fear and sorrow."

If Serena's hands weren't cuffed, she would have slapped him. Instead, she sighed and said "Fine, I'll do it . . . but how long am I expected to do this?"

"The rest of your life," said Teleurac plainly. "Odds are you will outlive your Pokemon by decades, but fear not! Under heavy supervision, you will then train up a new group of six for energy extractions – all with Mega Evolutions. Your cooperation and good behavior will slowly make your incarceration easier. I could move you out of that cell into a small apartment if you wanted, maybe even a house on down the line. I may even let you marry and raise a family, and you can pass on this incredible responsibility to your children."

Serena shook her head as she stared angrily into his eyes, wishing she could shoot fire from them. Her blood was on the verge of boiling. How could he expect her to raise another group of six Pokemon after her current team had died? How could she willingly train and become attached to them, knowing well what their fate would be? She would never allow herself to bond with those Pokemon enough to successfully carry out Mega Evolution with them. And she would never have children under the conditions he described – not even with Augustine.

"Serena . . . it won't be all for the weapon," said Teleurac. He looked away from Serena, towards Celosia. "Have you made any progress on the Geosenge parcel?" he asked the purple-haired scientist.

"I found it, sir. It's waiting in the warehouse," answered Celosia, glancing at Serena uncertainly. "You're showing all of this to her? Really?"

"Why not? She can't do anything about it, and I'm about to explain to her the primary purpose of this device . . . when will it be ready?"

"Hmm," intoned Celosia. "The Geosenge parcel is not compatible with the device in its current status. To use it, we would have to completely overhaul our device, re-circuit and reroute everything -"

"That's unacceptable," said Teleurac shortly. "I need that parcel integrated as soon as possible."

Celosia sighed. "Right now we need this reactor powering the cannon, so what if my team and I built another one with the Geosenge parcel? It would take us some time, though – six months to a year – but it would mean that your daughter would be brought back sooner than – oh, I've said too much haven't I?" she gave Serena another tentative look. Serena whipped her head around to look at Teleurac, trying to wrap her head around what she just heard.

"No, it's all right, Celosia," said Teleurac, whose eyes then met Serena's. "We had found some of the materials the ancient king used to build his great weapon, the ones that granted him the awesome ability to raise his beloved Pokemon from the dead. Now I plan to use them . . . Serena, my daughter was only eight when she died. Roselie had a pure, gentle heart, and she deserved a long happy life. I can give that back to her, and _you_ can help me."

If it was any other man, the story of a daughter's premature death may have stirred some emotion in Serena. It was nothing against Roselie – Serena just couldn't bring herself to pity Teleurac, no matter how much he pleaded. She shook her head at him.

"How many eight-year-olds in Aspertia City had their lives cut short?" she asked curtly. Teleurac's mouth gaped open in surprise at her response, but it quickly shut into a thin-lipped frown.

He looked past her towards Celosia. "Build the other reactor. Six months to a year? I'll have the world ready for her by then."

* * *

><p>Back in her prison cell, Serena sat on the sleeping mat with a plate in front of her. On the plate was a piece of burnt toast, hard as a rock. She didn't try to eat it – in fact, she didn't have much of an appetite at all. Despite everything she had seen and learned about and was told, her mind was blank, as if it was all too much and her brain didn't even want to process it. There were not even thoughts about escape plans; the first thing she asked herself was simply "Now what?" and the question recirculated through her mind every few minutes.<p>

She eventually moved the burnt toast off the mat and onto the floor next to her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a pair of feet outside her cell, clad in shiny black dress shoes and familiar-looking red socks. She looked up and sprang to her feet upon recognizing Augustine and marched to the front of the cell.

"Serena, I- I am so sorry," murmured Augustine in a shaky voice. He kept his eyes on his feet and his hands in his pockets. "Your note, Teleurac saw it. It fell out of my pocket when I was digging around looking for a pen – he read it before I got a chance to, and he told me to wait fifteen minutes once you arrived –"

"And you let yourself be used as bait to catch me," Serena finished his sentence. He still would not look up at her, but he nodded in agreement with her statement and muttered something along the lines of "threatened my Pokemon."

"So all of that you said about you following me wherever I went, and that we'd never be separated again . . . ?" How could he have had the gall to say any of that to her while knowing what was about to happen, she thought bitterly.

Augustine shook his head. Serena's heart sank.

"I tried to protect you, Serena. If someone else was in charge of hunting you down, you would have gotten hurt in the process of being captured," he explained.

Serena scoffed. "The goal was not to get captured at all!"

There was a beat of silence. She looked past him; Teleurac was leaning against the wall on the opposite end of the hallway, watching the two of them intently.

"I guess you don't have a plan to get me out of here, do you?"

He shook his head again. "I'm actually leaving Lumiose in an hour," he said quietly.

She sighed. "To do more of his dirty work? Augustine – you had a chance to rebel against him and you wasted it! I have no idea what you're getting out of handing me over to him, but I hope it's worth it."

He didn't respond.

Serena felt like she had been stabbed in the chest. In the past, she had excused his inability to deal with Lysandre because the two men had been friends. Now, she barely recognized him as the man who had always looked out for her, always been by her side, always fully supported her in everything she did. He was slouched, hunching his shoulders forward, with his hands in his coat pockets and eyes on his feet as if they were the only safe thing to look at. Serena knew that he was most likely forced into it, but why was it so hard for him to fight back? To say no and stand by it, no matter the cost? Perhaps he was more of a coward than she thought he was.

A thought popped into her head – a nefarious, soul-crushing one – that made sense for only an instant, but it spilled out of her mouth before she could stop herself.

"Our relationship was a lie, wasn't it? You were just there to spy on me for him."

For the first time in the conversation, Augustine made eye contact with her. His eyes were large and sorrowful, as if she had just told him that someone he loved had died.

"Serena, how – how can you say that?" he choked out, unable to believe what he had just heard.

She turned her back to him and focused on a spot on the wall. Why did she say that? She wasn't sure she meant it – it had just come out. Her hands were shaking at her sides, her lower lip trembled, and she felt like she could start crying. There would be no help for her now, she thought with resignation. It was likely that Teleurac would soon saunter in and tell her that her friends had been arrested.

"Just go," she said with a defeated finality.

"If that's what you want, I'll go. All I know how to do is what other people tell me to do, after all," said Augustine with an edge to his voice.

As she listened to him and Teleurac walk away, Serena closed her eyes. She felt alone, friendless, hopeless – all of it was crushing her, pressing in from all directions until she couldn't bear to stand upright anymore. She lay down on the sleeping mat, curled up around herself, and let the tears freely fall.


	25. Chapter 25

**TWENTY-FIVE**

"I just got a message from the surgeon in Dendemille. The convoy I sent out with your Charizard arrived at his practice an hour ago, and he is in surgery now . . . .You've been very quiet, Augustine," said Teleurac as he looked at Augustine from the front passenger seat of the car. During the car ride from the Kalos Federal Penitentiary back into Lumiose City, Augustine had kept his forehead pressed to the window, looking out as the red-brown landscape of the Lumiose Badlands passed by in a blur. It was good that Charizard was being tended to now, he thought, but the news had little impact on him. All he could think of was Serena, how confused and disappointed she looked, what she had said to him – her anger towards him was justified, but how could she question his feelings for her? Being hit in the crotch would hurt less than that. If she knew the truth about how he saved Ampharos from that procedure . . . .

"I have nothing to say," Augustine murmured.

"Aah . . . I suppose she's not too happy with you right now. Understandable. And she doesn't care that what you did was for her own good, what a pity . . . . You should be happy that she's in a safe place, out of the cold, and regularly fed. She'll always be there in that cell, so you can go visit her whenever you want, and . . . you know . . . ." Teleurac snickered.

Augustine's expression hardened.

"What's the matter, Professor? I just gave you permission to engage in intercourse with your girlfriend whenever you please. Consider it a reward for a job well done – in addition to surgery for your Charizard, of course."

Finding himself at a loss for words, Augustine turned back to the window. That was not the reward he wanted – sure, he had craved intimacy with Serena, but not like that. Not in small, cold prison cell where they would be on display for anyone walking by, and especially since she didn't want to see him.

"Oh, and Professor? After we fire at Castelia tonight, our energy reserves will be severely depleted. Once you return from Geosenge next week we will begin extracting energy from Serena's Pokemon. Make sure you collect plenty of virtumultite."

The rest of the ride back into Lumiose City was silent, other than Teleurac having a Holo Caster conversation with Malva about to deliver an address to the public concerning the oncoming strike against Castelia. Augustine found himself lost in his own thoughts, the reality of everything hitting him. He would have to deal with Teleurac and Team Flare for the rest of his life, going along with their plans even though he couldn't stand to be in the same space as any of them. He'd never be free.

None of that could have been worse than what Serena would have to endure, he reminded himself. She was being coerced into this, promised that her Pokemon would live out their days in relative comfort. Yet their lifespans would still be cut short – she would be devastated, heartbroken, suffering in solitude and thinking that he never really wanted her.

Serena had told him that whatever he got out of betraying her better be worth it. It wasn't. After that conversation, nothing would ever be worth it.

* * *

><p>Once back in Lumiose, Teleurac told the driver to go to Augustine's lab to pick up some equipment for the expedition to Geosenge. Augustine watched people on the streets during the drive: they all either watched the car go by, or were standing over a Holo Caster with surprise on their faces. The news about Serena's capture must have gotten out already, he thought.<p>

"Dominic will be driving you and your team to Geosenge. He will come pick you up in thirty minutes," Teleurac explained as the car pulled up to the curb outside the lab. A Flare grunt who was posted outside the lab's entrance approached the car and opened Teleurac's door. "No thank you, I'm not getting out. Go open the door for Professor Sycamore."

"You're not going in with me, sir?" asked Augustine.

"Weren't you listening to my conversation with Malva? I have to update the public about the situation with Unova, and then call President Oria and let her know that she has until tonight to surrender. Besides, the reason I went with you everywhere is now behind bars. I think you can be trusted to not do anything stupid in thirty minutes."

The Flare grunt opened Augustine's door, and Augustine stepped outside. The position of the sun indicated to him that it was now noon, and a cool breeze ruffled his hair slightly.

"I will call you tonight to for an update," said Teleurac before the grunt shut the door. The car drove off down South Boulevard.

Augustine turned on his heel and went into the lab, to be greeted by Diantha in the lobby.

"How are you?" he asked her, trying to sound happy.

"I am well, thank you," said Diantha. "Phoebe is spending the day in Coumarine with a kind elderly sailor she knew back in Hoenn, so I thought I would spend today here, with the eggs my Gardevoir laid. Sina and Dexio told me they would be in incubators on the third floor?"

"They are," answered Augustine. "I was actually on my way up there, to get some items from my office before I left for Geosenge."

The two of them approached the elevator together, and the doors opened to reveal Trevor, who was holding a clipboard and a Pokeradar. "Good morning, Professor," he said. "And Diantha," he greeted Diantha, then looked over both their shoulders to see if anyone was behind them.

"How is progress on your Burmy cloak distribution project going?" Augustine asked Trevor.

"I finished that project last week, Professor. We're focusing on Pumpkaboo sizes now," said Trevor.

"Ah, yes! _Désolé_, my lad," said Augustine apologetically.

"No worries, Professor. If Team Flare was keeping me for work past midnight regularly, I'd forget about the research happening in my own lab as well," said Trevor. He glanced past Augustine and Diantha again. "Um, Diantha . . . Tierno and the others are having their party tonight."

_"_Really?" asked Diantha, intrigued.

Trevor nodded, then glanced over at Augustine. "It's at ten o'clock tonight, same place as last time. I'm actually going to go with Shauna to talk to Clemont about it now . . . . Have a good trip, Professor." He walked past them, down another hall.

Augustine and Diantha stepped into the elevator. Diantha pressed "3" and closed the door quickly.

"I didn't know you went to their parties," commented Augustine, curious as to why Diantha was invited but he wasn't. His group of former students didn't even throw very many parties – only for special occasions and achievements. What was happening in their lives that he was missing out on?

"Tierno's trying to improve his public image as a performer, and I'm happy to help him out," said Diantha simply. "Besides, their parties are fun. Shauna mixes some very interesting drinks."

There was a pause.

"So it's true then, that Serena's in prison now," Diantha said suddenly and gravely.

Feeling something catch in his throat, Augustine nodded.

"I suppose it's a good thing that she has an adoring boyfriend who works for Team Flare that can secure her release?"

"It's not that simple," muttered Augustine.

The elevator door opened to his office, and he scurried out of the elevator before Diantha could grab his arm.

"So you're just going to let her stay there, because it's the 'simple' thing to do? If there is any hope of Team Flare going down for good this time, we need her help."

"Diantha –"

"I don't care if you're wearing a wire or if there are bugs all over this office! Augustine, you are miserable and afraid right now, I can see it even through those ridiculous goggles of yours. Do you remember what happened the last time you let your fear and insecurity lull you into inaction? Our dear friend was killed, Geosenge was destroyed, and you've spent the last three years sharing your guilt and remorse with me over the whole thing . . . . If you continue down this road of being Teleurac's puppet and doormat, there will be even more guilt and remorse waiting for you."

Her words cut him deep, and his hands started shaking again. Augustine crossed the space to a shelf that housed a variety of scientific instruments, where he located and grabbed a black box. He checked the contents of the box and saw that all the equipment inside was present and fully functional.

"The egg room is that way," he said tiredly as he pointed to a door next to the shelf.

"Thank you, Augustine . . . have a safe journey," Diantha said with stiff cordiality. She then patted him on the shoulder and went through the door he pointed out. When she was gone, he checked his watch. Dominic would come for him in around twenty minutes.

He rounded the partition and made his way to his desk. After spending a few minutes checking his e-mail and reading web articles and blog posts about how to make up with an angry girlfriend, he opened the desk drawer in front of him and started digging, intending to search for a pad of post-it notes. He pulled out pens, paper clips, staple removers, thumb tacks, rubber bands, spare scraps of paper, candies, and finally a black ring set with a multicolor stone that had the symbol of Mega Evolution engraved in it.

This had been Lysandre's Mega Ring. Augustine had visited Geosenge the day after Serena and the others had foiled Team Flare's plans there, digging through rubble for any sign of his friend. All he found was Lysandre's bloody lifeless hand sticking out from beneath a pile of rocks, the ring present on his index finger. Nobody knew he had taken it from the site, or that he had it in the back of his desk drawer for the last three years.

"_Tu me manque_, _mon ami_," he whispered solemnly as he twirled the ring between his fingers. Lysandre would enjoy what was happening – perhaps berate Teleurac for not being selective enough when it came to who lived and who died, but nonetheless celebrate the obliteration of innocent people who he would regard as selfish fools. It was no use dwelling on him, Augustine told himself. Lysandre was dead, and it was too late to save him. But it wasn't too late to save the people in his life now, he realized.

He slid the Mega Ring onto the index finger of his right hand.

As his eyes flickered over to the Mega Stones lined up on top of his shelf, his Holo Caster beeped. He answered to see it was Dominic.

_"Professor, we have arrived and we are waiting outside. Make your way down here immediately, please."_

Once the Flare Admin's holographic image vanished, Augustine grabbed the black box of equipment and held it under his arm. He rose to his feet, pulled a length of string with a pendant attachment out of his desk drawer, and marched by his Mega Stone shelf on the way to the elevator, picking up the Garchompite with his free hand and stashing it in his coat pocket.

* * *

><p>Augustine, Dominic, and their team of four junior Flare scientists arrived at Geosenge that evening, just as the sun began to set. If it weren't for a flat tire and some stubborn Dugtrio forming a roadblock in the badlands, they would have arrived sooner. Each time, as Dominic got out to change the tire or deal with the Dugtrio, Augustine chided himself for passing up an opportunity to act. He had yet to give his Garchomp the Mega Stone; it was still in his pocket and it went unnoticed there.<p>

When the truck came to a stop in front of Geosenge's Pokemon Center, Augustine scrambled out of the vehicle before Dominic even unbuckled his seatbelt. The four junior scientists, who had been riding in the back of the truck, clamored out next and started unloading the equipment that rode back there with them. Augustine noticed a few civilians poking their heads out of barely cracked-open doors and windows, curious and startled.

"Dominic," said Augustine as the Admin stepped out of the truck. "I'm going to go inside the Pokemon Center for a moment, to use the bathroom."

"Make it quick," said Dominic, not making eye contact with the Professor as he walked around to the back of the truck.

Without hesitation, Augustine walked briskly into the Pokemon Center. Several people inside eyed him nervously, and a few whispered amongst themselves. He picked out the word "backstabber" in one hushed conversation, and he felt a knot form in his chest. None of that was about to matter, he told himself.

He sent out Garchomp, and the people inside the Pokemon Center screamed and shrank back. The nurse at the counter looked at him with wide, uncertain eyes, but Augustine made himself ignore all of them.

"Remember this, _mon ami?_" he said to Garchomp as he pulled the Mega Stone and pendant out of his pocket. Garchomp nodded in recognition as Augustine attached the Garchompite to the pendant.

He was only a few inches shorter than Garchomp, but he still raised himself up on his toes to hang the pendant around his Pokemon's neck.

"I know we don't have much experience doing this, but we can do it. Kalos needs us . . . Serena needs us," he added, whispering this time. He swallowed hard, trying to rid the lump in his throat, and he realized that there would only be one shot at what he thought about doing. "Perhaps we should practice first, _non?_"

Augustine led Garchomp out of the Pokemon Center and saw that the junior scientists were still busy unloading boxes and crates of equipment while Dominic watched them. Dominic turned to see Augustine emerge, and appeared perplexed to see Garchomp out of his Pokeball.

"Professor, why is your Pokemon out? You know the Governor gave you explicit orders –"

"I don't think I'm going to follow the Governor's orders anymore," said Augustine firmly. Those words actually came out of his mouth - he astonished himself. Rebellion felt surprisingly good to him, and he wondered why he was waiting until he was in his thirties to try it out. "Garchomp, destroy that truck!"

Garchomp slammed his foot hard into the ground, shooting sharp spires of rock out from the ground from underneath the truck. The truck was launched several feet into the air, causing the Flare members to scramble out of the way before it landed upside-down on the ground with the sounds of crunching metal and shattering glass.

Dominic scoffed. "Looks like someone wants a prison cell next to his girlfriend," he sneered as he plucked a Pokeball off his belt and sent out the Beartic within.

Instantly, Augustine pressed his left index finger to the stone set in his Mega Ring. He watched as pink light erupted from his ring and from the Garchompite around his Pokemon's neck, the two bursts of light meeting to swirl and converge around Garchomp until he was completely enclosed in an ethereal sphere. Finally, the sphere exploded in another burst of light, and Mega Garchomp let out a terrifying roar as he bared his elongated claws.

He did it, Augustine thought in amazement. He actually did it. Now it was time to see what he was capable of.

"Beartic, use Icicle Crash!" Dominic commanded, trying to sound in-charge and authoritative even though he shrank back in awestruck fear of Mega Garchomp. With a swipe of its paw, Beartic formed large, sharp icicles out of thin air and sent them flying towards Garchomp, who evaded the attack by raising a wall of stone out of the ground between himself and the icicles. Each icicle hit the wall and exploded upon impact, leaving frosted and cracked spots on its surface.

Next, Garchomp pushed that wall forward and sent it flying towards Beartic. Beartic moved to get out of the way, but it was too slow; the wall slammed into the Ice-type and knocked it into the ground.

"Use Stone Edge," said Augustine. This time, the sharp spires that emerged from the ground at Beartic's feet were twice as tall as the ones that toppled the truck, striking Beartic in several places and causing it to fall to the ground with the spires. Dominic glowered at Augustine as he recalled his fainted Pokemon.

The four junior scientists had all let loose their own Pokemon: Magneton, Swalot, Clawitzer, and Dragalge. Watching Garchomp battle against Beartic energized Augustine, got his adrenaline going, as if he too could feel the power of Mega Evolution coursing through his veins. The odds were stacked against him right now, but he felt infinite and unstoppable.

"Earthquake," he directed. Garchomp drove the tips of the razor-sharp claws on his arms into the ground, leading to a localized earthquake of intense magnitude. Augustine was knocked onto his rear end while the Team Flare members braced themselves against what remained of the truck. Once the ground stopped shaking, all of Garchomp's opponents – with the exception of Clawitzer – had fainted. Clawitzer retaliated with a Dark Pulse, which hit Garchomp but did minimal damage. Garchomp had the last move, swiping his arm to land a powerful Dragon Claw against his opponent.

Dominic growled in frustration. "Everyone go heal your Pokemon _now!_ And call for backup!" The five Flare members sprinted into the Pokemon Center, leaving Augustine alone with Garchomp.

"Good work, _mon ami_," he said proudly, scratching Garchomp under the chin. "We should probably get a move on before backup arrives, _non?_"

His Holo Caster then beeped. It was Teleurac.

_"Professor, I hope your journey went well?"_ the Governor asked cordially.

"It was fine, thank you. Oh, and Governor . . . I quit. I mean it this time." Augustine ended the call and forcefully threw his Holo Caster onto the ground, smashing it under his heel until it broke apart into a mess of metal, plastic, and microchips. He then peeled off his red Team Flare lab coat and cast it onto the ground, leaving him dressed in his black dress shirt and slacks.

Garchomp bowed down so that Augustine could climb onto his back. Once Augustine had a secure grip on the large fin on the Pokemon's back, Garchomp reared back on his haunches and took off, arms extended like wings as he flew towards the Lumiose Badlands.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N:** Hey everyone! I'm planning on pushing out three chapters this coming week (including this one) instead of the usual two, and then a couple more next week before I go out of town for a couple of weeks. My last semester of college is heading into the home stretch, and coincidentally, the story is too!

* * *

><p><strong>TWENTY-SIX<strong>

There wasn't much for Serena to do inside her prison cell, rather than sit and mope or pace back and forth across the space. She found herself doing the latter more often than the former, if only because sitting still was becoming unbearable. Yet now that she had allowed herself a moment to cry and be blindly angry at Augustine and the whole situation he led her into, she began brainstorming her escape. She would probably have to wait until the first time they tried to have her Mega Evolve Charizard for energy extraction – an already strong Fire-type made even more powerful, they would be sorry they ever messed with her . . . .

* * *

><p>Posted outside of her cell was one Flare grunt with two Pokeballs on his belt. While Serena sat on her sleeping mat, leaning against the wall, the grunt rocked back and forth on his feet as he looked down both ends of the cell block. He whistled briefly, then glanced back towards her.<p>

"How are you doing?" Serena asked the guard casually.

The grunt hesitated before speaking. "Honestly, I'm a little bored right now."

"I'm sorry. If it makes you feel better, I'm plotting my escape right now," joked Serena. There was a beat of awkward silence.

"But standing guard outside _my_ cell. That's got to be a pretty big honor for you," she added.

The grunt chortled. "_Oui,_ _je suppose_ . . . why are you talking to me? You totally hate Team Flare."

"I'm bored too," said Serena, slightly taken aback by his statement. "And to clarify, I don't hate the people in your group. I hate your boss, and I hate what Team Flare stands for."

"Things are different now than they were back then," the grunt said defensively.

"Are they? You're all still out to make a more 'beautiful world' and doing so by killing innocent people and Pokemon. The only difference I see is that the killing isn't happening in Kalos."

"Do you want to know something, Serena? Lysandre's beautiful world was for the rich and powerful. I was an orphan boy from Shalour City with no future or prospects, and what he was proposing sounded pretty nice – but his ticket to the future cost five million Pokedollars, and to someone who would be lucky to have five hundred . . . well, you can imagine how it felt. I was as relieved as the next person when Team Flare fell the first time, but it felt hollow for me because I was still in the same place, living on the streets with _nothing_ but my Skitty. Right when things looked their bleakest, Alexandre Teleurac reached out to me. Of course I was horrified when I learned that he was the new boss of Team Flare, but then he explained to me his vision of a brighter future, which was much more inclusive, where even people like me had a chance to thrive . . . . Governor Teleurac's world is for anyone and everyone who will accept it."

Serena nodded slowly. "You know what they're doing to Pokemon, right? In order to make this all happen?"

"I do," said the grunt morosely. "So much is happening that I don't agree with, but Team Flare's my life. My livelihood. I have nothing else."

"Your Skitty?"

He tapped one of the Pokeballs on his belt, and smiled sadly at it. "She's a Delcatty now. Happy, healthy, strong . . . . Well, now that you know my sob story, you surely hate me a little less?"

"I never hated you," replied Serena defensively. "Just . . . _wow._ Right when I was thinking that Team Flare only attracted rich foolish clowns with bloodlust and bad hairdos."

The grunt laughed. "This is a wig," he said, pointing to his red hair. "But I've seen Bryony throw a tantrum when she couldn't find the hair dye that was her specific shade of green. And Aliana's not a natural redhead – whoops, she'd kill me if she knew I told you that."

Serena snickered. "What's your name?" she asked. It didn't seem right that she knew this grunt's backstory but not his name.

"Raoul," he replied.

She nodded. "Nice to meet you, Raoul. Now that we're properly acquainted, do you think there's a chance you'll let me out of here?"

"Keep dreaming," said Raoul.

"Eh, it was worth a shot," she muttered.

* * *

><p>Hours must have gone by, indicated by Raoul delivering her a peanut butter sandwich for lunch, but she still had no idea what time it was. The strike against Castelia may have already happened, and she would not have known about it.<p>

She soon settled down for a brief nap, using her rolled-up jacket as a pillow. Outside her cell, Serena heard several sets of footsteps. Raoul asked something to people outside, speaking in Kalosian, and the other party responded in Kalosian. Only a few words made sense to her: "What are you" spoken by Raoul, and "we have it" from the other party. She turned her head to the side to see Raoul reluctantly glance back at her before walking away, and a few seconds later a group of three Team Flare grunts and one prison guard approached the cell. They were all whispering amongst themselves, and the lone female grunt fidgeted with her wig before grabbing her Holo Caster out of her pocket.

"What do you want?" Serena asked lazily.

"You're being transferred," said one of the male grunts as he pulled a set of handcuffs out of his pocket. He then turned to the female grunt. "Open it."

Serena sprang to her feet and threw on her jacket as the female grunt approached the control panel outside her cell and pressed the Holo Caster against it. She looked over the group assembled outside; the security guard was the tallest, with a rotund figure that she found familiar. The third grunt, who had been silent the whole time, was a head shorter than the female grunt.

"You're awfully short to be a member of Team Flare," she said to the short, silent grunt. The guard snickered. With a _crackle_ and a _pop_, the force field vanished, and Serena leaped for the exit, only to be grabbed by the guard and the grunt holding the handcuffs.

"Serena, you need to play along," the one grunt whispered in her ear as he cuffed her hands together. While keeping one hand gripped tight around her arm, he used the other hand to lower his red sunglasses, and she found herself looking into Calem's eyes.

"Where am I being transferred?" she asked as Calem marched her down the hall, past other cells filled with other prisoners and a few that were empty. The female grunt – who lowered her sunglasses to reveal herself as Shauna and wink knowingly at her friend – walked alongside Serena on her other side. The security guard (who Serena assumed was Tierno) walked in front of the group with a self-important swagger, and the shortest grunt (presumably Trevor) brought up the rear. No other guards or Flare grunts were present in this cell block, which intrigued Serena but also worried her slightly.

"A facility in Lumiose. Governor Teleurac wants to keep you closer to him for security purposes," said Trevor.

Serena glanced at Shauna, who looked straight ahead with her head tilted upward slightly. In her hand she held her Holo Caster – or what was left of it. The underside of the device had some suction cups and clamps sticking out of it, which were now torn up or bent out of shape. Holo Casters usually didn't have those attachments – unless a certain Gym Leader who liked to tinker with technology had modified it for Shauna's use.

Once the five of them entered a stairwell at the end of the hall, Serena spoke.

"What the hell do you guys think you're doing?" she asked them. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful for their attempt to free her, but if her meeting with Augustine went horribly wrong, anything could.

"We're trying to get out of here before someone notices three Team Flare grunts and a security guard unconscious and tied up in a janitor's closet wearing nothing but their underwear," said Shauna.

"Which got me thinking," Tierno piped up as he bounced down the stairs in front of everyone else. "There are three Flying-types among the four of us that got us out here all right, but that's only because Altaria can fly two people while Aerodactyl and Talonflame can only carry one person each. I don't think Altaria could carry three people."

"He can't," agreed Calem. "I mean, if Professor Sycamore wasn't on his way to Geosenge, then –"

"No." Serena snapped. Shauna gave her a puzzled look.

"That man is the reason I'm in prison in the first place. He practically handed me over to them," Serena continued.

Tierno gasped and looked over his shoulder at her. Trevor didn't say anything. Calem groaned and muttered "He wouldn't."

"But – but – why?" Shauna sputtered through pouting lips.

"He's a no-good coward, Shauna."

What followed was a brief, tense silence, save for the sounds of their feet pounding hastily on stairs as they continued their descent.

"Well, at least now you know who your real friends are," remarked Calem when the group reached the ground floor after descending four flights of stairs. At that moment, an alarm started to go off: loud, high-pitched, screeching, and repetitive. There were three doors, one on each wall: one led out to another cell block and the main lobby, one led down to the basement, and another led to the prison garage. Everyone exchanged glances with one another, then unanimously bolted for the door that would take them into the garage.

Calem undid Serena's handcuffs once they were in the garage, which was a large roofed space with two long rows of cars: sedans, SUVs, trucks, police vehicles. As the others surveyed the space and noticed that the doors leading out into the world were shut, Calem sent out his Chesnaught and Shauna sent out her Delphox to stand by the door back into the stairwell. On the ceiling, a yellow light was flashing in time with the pulses of the alarm. Serena left her friends' side to dart around the walls of the garage, which were covered with flyers and notices, until she found a bulletin board with nails driven into it . . . and car keys hanging from those nails. She swiped a set of keys off a nail, noting how the initials "B8" were written on a sticker.

"Anyone want to go for a drive?" she called to her friends as she dashed down the lines of parked cars, noticing how each space was labeled "A1," "A2," and so on. She half-expected some Flare grunts to swoop in at any minute and stop them. Almost like the universe could read her mind, the stairwell door burst open, and several Pokemon emerged, followed by their Flare grunts: Houndour, Mightyena, Scrafty, and Swalot. Trevor and Tierno sent out Crawdaunt and Florges, respectively, to help Calem and Shauna do battle. Serena located parking space "B8," occupied by a sleek black SUV, and made a mental note of where it was before approaching the garage door, looking it over to see if there was an easy way to open it. There was a panel with numbers on the adjacent wall, but the display screen scrolled a message that read "PRISON UNDER LOCKDOWN – ACCESS DENIED." Would Shauna's device work on this? Serena glanced back at the battle, in time for Delphox to unleash a brilliant display of Mystical Fire at its opponent.

Soon, all four of the Flare grunts' Pokemon fainted, and one of them used his Holo Caster to call for backup. Calem recalled Chesnaught and sent out his Clefable, studying the closed garage door as he did. "Moonblast!" he cried, pointing at the door, and Serena dove to the side as the bright white beam of light shot from Clefable to the door, hitting it with a loud _boom_ and explosion of light and metal and leaving a hole in the door that showed the darkening night sky.

Serena sprinted back to parking space "B8" and used the keys to unlock the SUV. In the background, Clefable kept shooting Moonblast after Moonblast at the door while the others stared down the Team Flare grunts who were waiting for backup. The last time she drove a car was back when she lived in Kanto, but she remembered the basic gist of what to do. She turned it on and put the car in reverse, and backed out slowly, slamming her foot on the brake and stopping with a jerk when one last Moonblast sailed by. Now, there was a hole in the door big enough for a car to drive through.

She rolled down her window and shouted "Come on!" at her friends. Each of them recalled their Pokemon and made a break for the car, just as another bout of Flare grunts were entering the garage from the stairwell. Trevor hopped in the front passenger seat, while the other three sat in the back. Once everyone was in, Serena locked the doors, backed out some more, and put the car in drive. She slammed her foot onto the gas pedal, accelerating quickly as she saw more Pokemon emerge from the Flare grunts' Pokeballs. At first, she feared that the top of the hole Clefable had created was too low, but it was just the right height, with only an inch to spare, and she zoomed through with no problem.

The driveway she found herself on was barely lit, so she fumbled around with switches by the steering wheel until she found the one that turned on the car's headlights. She drove out from the driveway onto a dirt road that connected the prison to the main highway. Stars were out, like beads on a dark blue tapestry, contrasted against the looming silhouettes of the Lumiose Badlands. Serena looked at the clock on the dashboard: six-thirty. Only an hour and a half remained before the cannon fired; upon realizing that, she pressed her foot down harder on the gas pedal.

She turned onto the highway, going south towards Lumiose, and saw the posted speed limit as sixty-five kilometers per hours. Her speedometer read one hundred and five kilometers per hour. The speed felt reckless and dangerous, as if she was barely in control of the car, but there was a small thrill to it as well.

"Are we being followed?" she asked. Calem, Shauna, and Tierno looked behind them, seeing flashing lights of police cars, and they all said "Yes."

"Of course," she muttered, but she didn't feel too worried about trying to shake them off her tail. "Oh, and guys . . . thank you. You're the best friends anyone has ever had."


	27. Chapter 27

**TWENTY-SEVEN**

"So where are you going to go?" Calem asked Serena as she sped towards the Route 13 gate back into Lumiose. Of course a blockade had been set up, she thought when she saw several police cars in front of the gate, with police officers, Scrafty, and Machoke standing by. The police cars that had followed her from the prison were still on their tail.

"There's a huge complex underneath the city, and I think that's where my Pokemon are. But you can only get in by Teleporting with a specific Abra, and one is kept at the lab," said Serena, spewing words as her mind raced to think of how to pass the blockade. Her speedometer indicated she was going a hundred kilometers per hour, there were five stationary cars in front of the gate, and it didn't look like anyone was inside them. She didn't have the means to fight them off, and there really wasn't time.

Her hands gripped the steering wheel. "Everyone hold onto something," she said as she accelerated, staring down the police at the blockade as if she knew this was going to work, when in truth she didn't know if it was. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Trevor brace himself against the dashboard, and she felt Shauna push onto the back of her seat. There was a gap between two cars almost large enough for the SUV to fit through, and she aimed for it. As she drew closer to that gap, the police officers and Pokemon standing on either side of it jumped out of the way, just in time for her to violently bump into both of the cars. The police cars were knocked to the side, a motion accompanied by the sound of metal and glass scraping and breaking against one another. Besides being jolted a little, the SUV appeared to Serena to not suffer any major damage, and she kept driving on through the gate.

"Are you crazy?" Trevor half-shouted as he looked in the rearview mirror to see police officers survey the damage to their cars or get into unscathed ones.

"Perhaps," muttered Serena. She sped through the gate and into Lumiose, winding up on the edge of North Boulevard. Driving through and crashing into those police cars caused her to lose some speed, but she thought it would be safer to go slightly slower anyway, now that they were in the city. She turned right suddenly, almost causing the car to roll over and making Tierno yelp in surprise. People and Pokemon in the streets saw them coming and ran out of the way, but Serena still had to swerve around some of them. When Augustine's lab came into view, so did the flashing lights of police cars in pursuit. Those on the sidewalks, many of whom had scrambled to avoid Serena, shrank back against buildings to watch what was happening.

Calem rolled down his window and sent out his Altaria, giving the Pokemon instructions to stop the police cars. Altaria flew around to the space behind the SUV and launched a Dragon Pulse at the police cars, sending them flying up into the air, doing somersaults until landing hard on the ground.

"Nice one," Serena commented as she saw the last of the police cars land upside-down through the rearview mirror. She moved her foot from the gas pedal to the brake and began slowing down, pulling up to the curb outside the entrance to Augustine's lab and coming to a complete stop.

"Okay, you all need to get out of here. Now." Serena shoved the gearshift to put the car in park.

"Do you want someone to go with you?" Calem offered as he stuck an arm out the window to recall Altaria.

"No. You guys go. Get out of town. You've done enough for me . . . do any of you know how to drive?"

"I can," said Shauna.

Serena opened her door and jumped out of the car. She surveyed the scene around her: toppled and broken police cars, their drivers crawling out from the wreckage, and civilians standing back and watching. One of the civilians recognized her and shouted "It's her! She's escaped!" followed by several other onlookers cheering and clapping: "Send them packing!" "Kick Teleurac in the bum!" "_Vive le Kalos!_"

She glanced over to the nearest group of people, standing outside the Pokemon Center. Behind her, car doors opened and closed, indicating that Shauna had moved to the driver's seat. One member of that crowd – a teenage boy with an athletic build – came running towards her, calling her name.

"Serena! Serena!" he said as he skidded to a halt in front of her. "My name's Tony, and I'm a HUGE fan of yours. You're such a badass. Especially since you just broke out of jail and all –"

"It was all my friends, actually," said Serena humbly, pointing behind her to the SUV. She glanced back and wondered why Shauna was poking her head out the window and watching instead of driving off.

"Well, whatever. Anyway, can I help you escape Team Flare? I have a team of six very powerful Pokemon at my disposal – perhaps you've heard of them? Xerneas, Yveltal, Zygorm or whatever it's called, Mewtwo, Victini, and Arceus, the god of Pokemon itself!" Tony smirked with a pompous overconfidence.

"_Really?"_ asked Serena. She crossed her arms and looked at Tony skeptically. Zygarde hadn't been seen in months apparently, and Mewtwo had supposedly done a good enough job of sealing itself away in the Unknown Dungeon so no human could ever bother it again. "If you want to help me, I want you to have Arceus destroy the cannon on top of Prism Tower right now."

"Oh - uh – yeah, sure!" said Tony as he scratched the back of his head. "Look, let me go home and grab them first," he added nervously before breaking into a sprint and disappearing down the boulevard.

Serena rolled her eyes and turned back to the car, making eye contact with Shauna.

"We'll distract the cops," offered Shauna. Immediately after she finished speaking, the sounds of police sirens could be heard, growing steadily louder.

"And then get out of town," said Serena. "I'll find you guys later, and we'll have a hell of a revolution."

Shauna smiled, and then turned to face the road in front of her. The SUV then sped off, and Serena heard all of her friends shout "_VIVE LE KALOS!_" from the windows of the car as she sprinted to the lab. Once inside, she ducked under a window and poked her head up high enough to watch police cars speed by in pursuit of Shauna and the others. One Team Flare Admin on a motorbike stopped by the crowd in front of the Pokemon Center and asked them in a booming voice which way Serena had went. Everyone in the crowd pointed down the boulevard, in the direction that the SUV had gone.

The elevator ride up to the third floor lasted way too long, and she expected it to stop any second. Luckily, the doors opened up to the office on the third floor. She raced forward, around the partition to the desk and yanked open every drawer and cabinet in sight, tossing out item after item in search of a Pokeball. Along the way, she found a small box wrapped in silver wrapping paper and tied up with a red ribbon; there was a tag on the ribbon, which bore the writing "To Serena. _Je t'adore._ _Joyeux Noel_." Although curiosity got a hold of her, Serena placed the box aside; it was probably just some tacky piece of jewelry anyway.

She found a Pokeball tucked in the back of a file cabinet, and she sent out the Pokemon inside. To her relief, it was indeed an Abra. "Teleport me," she said, trying to sound authoritative. "Flying Litwick."

* * *

><p>A few seconds of compression and disorientation later, Serena found herself inside the room she had once transported to with Augustine. Before she could think to do anything else, Abra Teleported away. "Really?" she hissed, cursing whoever trained that Abra.<p>

She opened the door out into the hall, looked to her right to see the staircase that led up to the central chamber where the weapon's reactor was; not yet, she told herself. Instead, she turned left and ran down that stretch of hallway, stopping to open the first door she saw. That soon revealed itself as a mistake, as that room was full of computer workstations and several Team Flare grunts. When they recognized her, each grunt sent out a Pokemon; she slammed the door shut and dashed to the next door, which turned out to be a janitor's closet. Room after room yielded unfavorable results, and some Pokemon behind her were shooting Shock Waves and Flamethrowers in her general direction. Her ears rang with the cries of Pokemon, their Trainers shouting orders, and the whooshes and bursts of the attacks launched her way. She narrowly dodged one Flamethrower as she ducked into another room and used a chair to barricade the door behind her . . . for all the good it would do her.

She stooped over, hands on her knees, to catch her breath and cool off before investigating her surroundings. This room had computers lining the walls, each one labeled with the kind of information it contained or processed. In the center of the wall opposite the door was a computer in a tall red casing, and the sign on the casing read "Overflow Pokemon." Pushing back the strands of hair that had fallen out of her braid, Serena approached this computer, which had to be a storage PC. There was a slot underneath the monitor where Pokemon went for withdrawal or deposit, after all. She moved the cursor to wake up the monitor's display, then flicked through storage box after storage box which all contained Pokemon native to Azure Bay or Terminus Cave. None of them contained any Legendary Pokemon, she noted thankfully.

Finally, she came to a box labeled "S.C." and she recognized all the Pokemon she had ever caught and the ones in her main team: Eevee, Haunter, Fletchling, Vivillon, Dedenne, Skrelp, Carbink, Klefki, Noivern, Meowstic, Lucario, Ampharos, Charizard, and Greninja. How the others wound up here, she had no idea.

Something slammed into the door, and Serena jumped when she heard it. Hastily, she withdrew her main team and Noivern and clipped the Pokeballs to her belt, taking a moment to hold the ball-laden belt tight to her chest as if she was hugging the Pokemon themselves. She sent Noivern out from his Pokeball, just in time for those outside to slam into the door again with enough force to make the chair budge. She heard the high, guttural croak of a Croagunk outside, followed by Scrafty's cry.

"Remember how I promised you lots of Team Flare goons to fight?" she said to Noivern as she cautiously approached the door and grabbed onto the chair. "Well, they're all outside waiting for you. Give them hell." She pulled the chair out from under the doorknob and flung the door open.

Noivern zoomed out and began howling and screeching angrily, sending Air Slashes flying at every living being in sight. Serena sent out Greninja and Lucario as well to help Noivern, and she stepped out into the hallway and watched, sidled up against a wall and smirking triumphantly as Croagunk after Scrafty after Emolga after Slugma fell after being hit by Air Slashes, Water Shurikens, or Aura Spheres. Once all of the Pokemon belonging to the Flare grunts and Admins had been fainted, Celosia appeared from another room farther down the hall, and she sent out her Manectric.

Manectric shot a blinding Thunderbolt and struck Noivern with it. Noivern fell to the ground, wisps of smoke rising from electrical burns on his body, and he lay unconscious on the floor. Greninja was Manectric's next target, but he deftly hopped around the room to dodge the Thunderbolts shot at him until Serena recalled him.

"I hope you're enjoying time out of your prison cell, because you'll be back there very soon," said Celosia smugly as she stopped by her Manectric's side. Serena recalled the fainted Noivern and glared at Celosia intensely. Nothing was going to stop her, not even this overconfident scientist whose purple hair coloring was starting to fade at the roots.

"We'll see about that," Serena shot back as Lucario stepped forward to stare down Manectric. Before issuing any attacks herself or giving Celosia a chance to do the same, she pressed her finger to the stone set in her Mega Ring; a few swirls and explosions of pink light later, Lucario had emerged as his Mega Evolved form.

"Close Combat!" Serena cried. Lucario lunged forward and struck Manectric with a series of swift yet powerful punches, leading to the Electric-type collapsing on the ground. Celosia growled through gritted teeth as she returned Manectric to its Pokeball, and then she sent out her Drapion next. Serena smirked; did Celosia really think her Pokemon stood a chance against Lucario?

"Drapion, use X-Scissor!" commanded Celosia. Drapion swiped both its arms down at diagonals, as if it was cutting an X out of thin air. The attack hit Lucario, but it only made him flinch slightly. One well-placed Aura Sphere from Lucario was enough to faint Drapion.

"Urgh, so lame!" Celosia whined as she recalled Drapion. She then looked past Serena, and her pout turned into a smug smile. Serena turned her head, and she saw the green-haired Bryony approaching.

"What's going on – ah ha ha ha! What do we have here?" asked Bryony, noting Serena surrounded by Team Flare grunts and Celosia. She grabbed a Pokeball and sent out her Liepard.

"The little jailbird's broken out of her cage and is flying around for a bit," said Celosia.

Serena rolled her eyes. "Lucario, use Aura Sphere," she said, pointing to Liepard. How many more Flare members was she going to have to deal with? There wasn't time for this.

Aura Sphere landed a critical hit and fainted Liepard in one shot. Bryony sent out her Bisharp next.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me," Serena said to Bryony, half-irritated and half-taunting. "It's been three years and you still have the same Pokemon? You didn't think to customize your lineup to deal with twerps like me?"

"Back then, winners and losers hadn't been decided yet. Today, though, we've already won!" declared Bryony, lazily tossing a hand in the air.

"It's not over yet," said Serena. "Lucario, Close Combat!"

Bisharp didn't stand a chance. Lucario delivered his attack, and the Dark- and Steel-type flew backwards and fell onto the ground. Bryony recalled her fainted Pokemon, and looked at Serena with an arrogant smirk on her face.

"Should we call Aliana and Mable?" Bryony asked; Celosia shook her head.

"No. They're out looking for the one who decided to think with his dick and go on a power trip," said Celosia. "It seems that stalling for time is not working as well as I hoped it would." She locked eyes with Serena. "Our weapon fires in less than an hour, you know," she said. "You can go try and stop it if you want, if it'll put your conscience at ease." She gestured to the staircase on the opposite end of the hall, letting out a devious snicker as she did.

Saying nothing, Serena pressed the stone on her Mega Ring again to return Lucario to his unaffected state, and then recalled him to his Pokeball. She then took off in a mad dash to the staircase, past all the Flare grunts who had previously tried to stop her, and ran up the stairs while skipping over several steps. She saw the eerie green glow of the gas inside the reactor before she even entered the central chamber, and when she arrived she stared at it for a moment. The gas inside was swirling faster than it was the last time she saw it, and the intensity of its glow pulsated in time with each swirl and twirl.

Only one person was currently in the central chamber: Teleurac, who stood at the control panel in front of the tall red screen, Holo Caster in his hand. The countdown to the weapon's firing showed the remaining time to be 00:47:45, with the seconds still ticking down.

Teleurac must have heard her footsteps, for he turned his head towards the entrance of the room. His expression hardened when he saw Serena, and he grabbed a Pokeball off his belt. A Liepard emerged, and it growled menacingly at her.

"I heard you escaped from prison . . . you never cease to surprise me, Serena," he said coolly. "It seems that you still need to learn some obedience . . . . Liepard, use Night Slash."


	28. Chapter 28

**TWENTY-EIGHT**

Augustine thought that he and Garchomp were making pretty good time. An hour or so of flying had gotten them from Geosenge to the edge of the Lumiose Badlands, and he could see the valley where the Kalos Penitentiary stood. The building itself was barely in view; he could only see its roof, red-brown like the surrounding earth, and with several Flying-type Pokemon perched on top of the roof and surrounding cliffs.

As he and Garchomp drew only slightly nearer to the prison, the other Flying-type Pokemon spread their wings and took flight, soaring towards them as fast as they could go. Team Flare grunts rode on the back of Pidgeot alongside the other Pokemon so they could give orders. When commanded, one Swanna opened its mouth wide and shot an Ice Beam towards Garchomp. The Dragon-type banked hard to the side to avoid being hit, and Augustine clung onto his Pokemon for dear life. None of the Pokemon on the offensive came too close to Garchomp, preferring to send ranged attacks his way. After dodging what felt like the umpteenth Air Slash and Ice Beam and Hydro Pump, Augustine noticed that a Togekiss was now fast approaching.

"Go to the lab," he said to Garchomp, low enough not to be heard. There wasn't any way they would get past all of these Pokemon, he thought dejectedly.

Garchomp shot straight up and did a mid-air corkscrew, going upside down and twisting in the air so he could assume a southbound trajectory towards Lumiose City. He swerved to the side once more, to evade a bright Dazzling Gleam that the Togekiss had shot at him.

Augustine looked back; none of those Pokemon or grunts were following him. He realized that they must have known he was coming . . . and there could possibly be more on the way to the lab.

Garchomp picked up some speed and Augustine wondered if they would make it anywhere in good time. The last of the hazy orange twilight was lingering on the horizon to the west, and in the east the stars had come out to shine. To the south, Prism Tower stood where it usually did, its cannon pointed east towards Unova and giving off a much eerier aura than usual. It must have been the knowledge that the cannon was going to fire again in less than forty-five minutes, according to his watch.

The Abra he kept in the lab could Teleport him into the prison – hopefully. If he could remember the passphrase for it. Was it Arena Trap? Or Trapinch Nest? Dig Diglett Dig? Trio Trio Trio? It had to be one of those, and he would just have to keep trying until he wound up where he wanted to go.

* * *

><p>The flight into Lumiose went off without a hitch. To his surprise, the city's sky patrollers just let him pass, and it made him fear what awaited him on the ground. He peered down onto the city streets as Garchomp gradually made his descent, gliding swiftly and gracefully over the Lumiose rooftops; the police and Team Flare presence was as it usually was, and he didn't see anyone waiting in alleyways in preparation for an ambush. For a moment he considered just flying up to Prism Tower and letting Garchomp hack away at the cannon, but there were still plenty of patrolling Pokemon circling it.<p>

The two of them touched down in front of the lab, and Augustine slid off of his Pokemon's back. He frantically turned in a circle, making sure nobody was around to chase him, and then he saw a blur of red-orange, brown, and black zoom his way from the entrance to his lab and ram hard into Garchomp. Garchomp slid and stumbled backward, and the Talonflame that struck him with its Brave Bird attack flew around and back to its Trainer, who was now standing at the top of the stairs leading into the lab. The first thing Augustine noticed was her pink hair.

"I've been expecting you, Augustine," said Malva ominously as Talonflame returned to her side.

"Have you now?" Augustine shot back.

"Yes. The Governor told me you might be heading this way . . . it's a shame, though. I thought you looked good in red. Talonflame, use Brave Bird again."

Talonflame shot off, flying towards Garchomp as fast and hard as it could. When its attacker was within range, Garchomp swiped out an arm, attacking with a Dragon Claw that left a dark gash along Talonflame's wing and knocked it into the pavement.

When he saw that Talonflame was still conscious and struggling to stand up, Augustine said "Garchomp, finish it. Stone Edge." The sharp spires of rock that jutted out from the ground jabbed into Talonflame and fainted the Pokemon.

"Well what do we have here? Professor Sycamore, so mediocre in battle, has some confidence now that he's mastered Mega Evolution himself!" Malva bounded down the stairs as she spoke, recalling Talonflame once she reached the sidewalk. At that moment, several police cars and motorbikes arrived and pulled to a stop several yards away. Augustine watched the officers disembark from their vehicles but stop in their tracks as Malva called out to them. "Don't worry. I have this handled!" She then sent out Chandelure, commanding it to use Confuse Ray.

Confuse Ray hit Garchomp, leaving him to sway and stagger from side to side. After an initial jolt of panic, Augustine took a deep breath and asked himself: how would Serena handle this? What did she do when an opponent's Pokemon confused hers right out of the gate?

"Focus, Garchomp!" he cried impulsively. Malva cackled at him. Garchomp turned his neck, aware that someone had called out to him, but didn't do anything else.

"Shadow Ball," Malva said to her Pokemon. Chandelure created a dark, blobby sphere and sent it flying towards Garchomp, landing a hit in the stomach. Garchomp flinched slightly in response.

"Come on!" Augustine shouted. "Use Dragon Claw!"

Garchomp raised an arm and looked at it, temporarily mesmerized by the sharp curved claw on the end of it. He then thrust the pointed end of the claw into the ground so hard that it too several seconds of wiggling to free it – enough time for Chandelure to hit him with another Shadow Ball.

There was always Blastoise, Augustine told himself as he watched in horror. The crowd of people outside the Pokemon Center crept closer and closer to watch, only being halted in their progress by the police.

"I know you can do it, Garchomp! Try Dragon Claw again!"

That time, the attack hit Chandelure and drove it down into the ground, cracking pavement underneath the fallen Pokemon. With an irritated growl, Malva recalled Chandelure and sent out Torkoal next.

"Garchomp, use Earthquake!" Augustine cried out, hoping for the best. Garchomp snarled and roared at Torkoal, then pounded the tips of his claws into the ground to trigger another localized tremor. The bystanders screamed in shock from being shaken by the Earthquake. The force of the attack was enough to faint Torkoal in one shot, and that feeling Augustine felt in Geosenge - the adrenaline surge, the pure power running through his veins – returned. Her last Pokemon didn't stand a chance.

As soon as Garchomp figured out how to do so in his confusion, he attacked Pyroar using Stone Edge, and the Fire-type fainted in one hit. Malva recalled her fainted Pokemon and shot him a heated glower, hissing through gritted teeth.

"You're still not going anywhere!" she told him, and then she looked towards the police officers. "Do any of you have a spare Pokemon or some medicine? I want to see him burn! And somebody do something about that beast of his!"

Augustine watched one officer approach Malva, handing a Pokeball to her. He glanced over to Garchomp, who had just snapped out of his confusion and managed to stand tall and upright again with claws bared. Another officer sent out a Glaceon, which stared down Garchomp.

"What would Teleurac say if you killed me, Malva?" he asked, trying to sound confident so he could hide the fear building up inside of him. Was she really going to try and kill him?

"You've become a liability, Professor. And honestly, now that we have Serena, I don't think we need you anymore."

Malva raised an arm to throw the Pokeball, but she paused when she heard the cry of a Gardevoir coming from the entrance of the lab. Augustine looked that way, and watched as Diantha touched her Mega Charm to envelop her Pokemon in the pink light that accompanied Mega Evolution.

"I will personally make sure you're next, Malva!" Diantha shouted indignantly as she marched down the stairs, followed by Mega Gardevoir.

Malva cackled maliciously, and waved for the police officers to come closer and form a semicircle around herself, Diantha, and Augustine. "Champion or not, do you know how much trouble you would be in for murdering me?"

"I don't give a damn about that! Three years ago, when your group first caused problems, I should have never stood up for you. I should have never allowed you to keep your spot in the Elite Four. But I did, because I thought you were my friend. I see now that means nothing to you . . . and quite frankly, I wish Augustine here would have left at least one of your Pokemon able to battle, so I could have a go at you!"

Augustine had never seen Diantha so angry before. She looked like she could breathe fire, one hand was clenched into a fist while the other pointed sharply at Malva, and her eyes were narrowed in a blazing fury.

Appearing unaffected by Diantha's words, Malva looked from her to Gardevoir, then to Garchomp, then around to the police present. "What are you fools waiting for? Arrest them!" she yelled wildly, waving her arms at Diantha and Augustine.

Diantha and Gardevoir joined Augustine's side, and the two friends gave each other affirming glances. Those police officers were coming closer to them and sending out their Pokemon. Augustine felt a cold sweat break on his brow as he saw how outnumbered he and Diantha were, but he gritted his teeth in determination.

"Is this part of your grand master plan?" she asked him cheekily.

"_Non,_ I'm making this up as I go along," he confessed, watching the police officer's Glaceon open its mouth in preparation to shoot an Ice Beam at Garchomp. "There's an Abra in my office that can Teleport me to the prison, and Garchomp's fairly good at smashing up – Garchomp, use Stone Edge!" he cried to his Pokemon, who obeyed and used the attack to faint Glaceon.

Malva released the Houndoom loaned to her, and it pounced towards Gardevoir.

"Moonblast!" commanded Diantha, and watched as the bright white beam of light struck and fainted the Houndoom. She turned back to Augustine. "I saw you battling Malva upstairs, and on my way down, I noticed that someone had been in your office. They had gone through your things, and that Abra was just Teleporting back in."

"Really?" an intrigued and baffled Augustine said. Some Team Flare grunts had just arrived on the scene, and they sent out their Pokemon at Malva's command. Three of their Pokemon - Scrafty, Toxicroak, and Golbat – quickly found themselves on the business end of Garchomp's Dragon Claw. Malva had taken a step back to nonchalantly watch the battle of two Mega Evolved Pokemon against Team Flare and the police, until one grunt handed her a Max Revive. She used the Max Revive to heal her Talonflame, and then sent it flying towards the lab. Talonflame flew through one of the windows on the second floor and came out a few seconds later, then up to the third floor, and finally the first floor, leaving the ominous glow of fires inside the building on all three levels.

"NO!" bellowed Augustine, too stunned by the sight of the flames growing inside his lab to consider sending Blastoise out to deal with it. Soon, those inside poured out: Cosette, Sophie, Sina, Dexio, and the others, accompanied by their Pokemon. The fire grew quickly, setting off some explosion on the second floor that blew out a couple of windows and allowed thick black smoke to escape. Malva looked on with a smug, self-satisfied smirk on her face.

"You have nowhere to run now, Professor. No way to go anywhere or rescue anyone," she said, her tone a mix of victorious and grave.

With the breath knocked out of him and his insides feeling tensed up, Augustine looked from Diantha to the staff of his lab. Sina and Dexio had set to work putting out as much of the fire as they could with their Azumarill and Gyarados. There would be time to mourn the loss of his lab and life's work later; right now, Malva had begun to call for backup (specifically Ice, Fairy, and Steel types) and he needed to quickly figure out something to do that didn't get anyone killed.

An Altaria soon flew into view, followed by an Aerodactyl. With the use of Ancientpower and Dragon Pulse, the two Pokemon sent the police vehicles flying into the air and rolling around, clearing a path for a scratched-up black SUV with dents in the front fender to come to a sudden halt in front of Garchomp. The passenger side window rolled down to reveal Trevor.

"Get in, you two!" he hollered to Augustine and Diantha. The two of them recalled their Pokemon and made a break for the SUV, each diving into the backseat after Calem opened the door for them. It was a tight fit, squeezing four people into the backseat, but as soon as the door was shut Shauna slammed her foot on the gas pedal and made the car zoom off again. Augustine looked out the window; they had left the lab staff behind, but the police and Team Flare seemed more interested in watching them drive away. Calem and Trevor both reached out of their respective windows to recall their Pokemon.

"What are you all doing?" Augustine asked his four former students, gripping onto the edge of his seat. The speed at which Shauna was driving felt dangerous to him.

"Trying to avoid people who want to arrest us," said Shauna, her brow furrowed in concentration. "All the gates out of the city are closed, and we don't have enough Flying-type Pokemon to try flying out, so we just did a lap around the city." She glanced up to the rearview mirror, noting the flashing lights of police cars in pursuit.

"Wait – what did you do?" inquired Diantha.

"Eh, nothing major," said Tierno casually. "We just broke Serena out of prison, that's all."

"Well where is she now?!" Augustine blurted out. Calem shot him an icy look.

"She's in their super secret HQ under the city, looking for her Pokemon and preparing to break that cannon before it fires," said Calem.

"Why didn't you all go with her?" Augustine pressed. He could only imagine what was happening underground at that moment, which included visions of her Charizard setting things on fire followed by Greninja lobbing Water Shurikens at everything in sight, and Ampharos shooting wicked Thunderbolts.

"She wanted us to get out of here, probably thinking that we'd be safer if we left the city," said Trevor.

"I hate to be blunt, Professor, but I don't think you're really one to talk when it comes to ensuring Serena's well-being." Calem snapped. Shauna turned left suddenly, causing everyone to lean and slide to the right. They were all now heading through an alley, and luckily nobody followed them that way.

Feeling all eyes on him, even Shauna's through the rearview mirror, Augustine hung his head in shame. "It's complicated, the circumstances. But . . . you don't want or need to hear that. It doesn't justify anything I've done. I'm sorry for what I did, and I want to do the right thing now, for both Serena and Kalos. Shauna, if you can let me out at the earliest opportunity, I need to find a way to get down there."

There was an uneasy silence as everyone looked at Augustine, silently judging him and trying to figure out whether or not they should accept his apology. He honestly didn't expect them to forgive him.

"Sure, you can go find another way into their headquarters. But I'm not letting you leave my sight, Professor," said Calem bluntly.

"That's fair, I suppose," replied Augustine.

The alleyway reached a fork, one way going left and the other right. "Which way?" Shauna asked, looking in the rearview mirror and seeing the distant flashes of lights on police bikes.

"Let's split up," suggested Trevor. "We'll meet at the café later tonight as planned."

Shauna put the car in park and looked back to Calem. "Which way do you want to go?" she asked him.

"Left," said Calem, "and we'll take Professor Sycamore with us. We should all try to find a way underground to their HQ, even if we don't all get there together." He opened his door and hopped out, then waited for Augustine to climb over Diantha and Tierno to join him. Shauna then disembarked the car, and the three of them watched as Trevor, Tierno, and Diantha got out of the car to take the right-leading fork.

As he ran down the increasingly narrowing alley with Shauna and Calem, Augustine checked his watch. It was seven fifty-five, five minutes before the cannon fired . . . unless the unlikely happened and Oria had surrendered. Calem stayed several steps behind Augustine, keeping his eyes trained on the Professor and a Pokeball clenched in his hand.

"Which way should we go?" Calem asked Augustine. The Professor thought for a moment: he had no means of accessing an Abra for teleportation, and all of the above-ground entrances had been filled in . . . except for one, which was concealed by a cinderblock wall that Garchomp could easily smash through.

"Magenta Plaza," he said. "There used to be a way in through Lysandre Labs. Garchomp can break the wall down and we're in."

The three of them continued moving for a couple of minutes, heading north through winding side roads and alleys. Shauna stopped suddenly and looked to the sides until she decided to turn left. "It's right there!" she declared, pointing down another stretch of alleyway. She led the other two that way, into the open space of Magenta Plaza. A light streamed through an open window from a nearby house, allowing some illumination so that the purple obelisk in the middle of the plaza could be seen. Two Flare Grunts were standing around the Plaza, checking their Holo Casters for a message or the time. Shauna, Calem, and Augustine dashed by them, running to the café with the red storefront and boarded up doorway. Calem sent out his Chesnaught, who tore off the boards over the door so he and the others could enter.

Before he went into the former Café Lysandre, Augustine looked up at Prism Tower. He noticed that the cannon was no longer pointed east, but rather straight up into the sky. It was curious to him that this had happened, and he tried to search for a reason why Teleurac would change the weapon's trajectory all of the sudden.

"Come on, Professor!" Just as Calem and Shauna pulled him into the café, the powerful red beam erupted from the cannon, shooting vertically into the air.


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: **So instead of studying for finals like a good kid, I'm writing instead. But more importantly, I think Tony has something to say. (Where was your in-story double and his awesome team of Legendaries in the last chapter when the cannon went off, dude? Falling down on the job, tsk tsk . . . . :P)

Also: the events of this chapter occur roughly concurrently with the events of the previous one. I posted them in the order that I did in an attempt to create dramatic effect.

* * *

><p><strong>TWENTY-NINE<strong>

Serena started to move the instant she saw Liepard pounce towards her, but before she could reach for a Pokeball, she felt an intense stinging pain slash at a diagonal across her shoulder and chest. She let out a pained "Aaah!" and stumbled backwards, seeing a spray of dark blood eject from where she had been hit. Liepard retreated back slightly, glancing back at Teleurac to await another command.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Teleurac, "I thought your reflexes would be a little quicker." He did not sound apologetic at all.

Serena looked down and winced at the streak of flesh ripped open, and the dark red blood now pouring out of it. After peeling off her jacket and pressing it as hard as she could against the wound with her left hand, she used her right hand to throw Lucario's Pokeball and send out the Pokemon.

"Close Combat!" she said frantically. Lucario executed the swift series of punches and jabs, refusing to relent until Liepard collapsed to the ground.

Teleurac let out a low, throaty growl. "So this is how you want to do this," he said as he recalled Liepard. "Very well. It seems you are more trouble than you are worth." He threw out another Pokeball, and Typhlosion appeared.

"Blast Burn!" shouted Teleurac. The collar of flames on the back of Typhlosion's neck rapidly increased in size, and Typhlosion bent its upper body down so that it could easily shoot fire from both its neck and mouth to envelop Lucario in a quick-acting, intense conflagration. When the flames dissipated, Lucario was left on one knee, blackened and singed, before he finally fell fainted to the ground.

Teleurac smirked. Serena recalled Lucario and sent out Greninja next, and the smirk on Teleurac's face vanished instantly.

"Greninja, use Hydro Pump!" she said. Her Pokemon shot the torrential blast of water at Typhlosion, only to have Typhlosion leap to the side to avoid it. Hydro Pump struck one of the glass panels of the reactor chamber, leaving a wet spot on the glass and the floor below it. After Typhlosion regained its footing, its neck began to crackle with electricity, preparing to use Wild Charge at Teleurac's command. Typhlosion charged towards Greninja, bowing its head down as it went, but Greninja leaped out of the way, high into the air, and released a spray of Water Shurikens at Serena's command. Each Shuriken hit Typhlosion, evaporating into steam as it made contact with the Fire-types body.

Once Typhlosion had fainted, Teleurac sent out his Luxray. As per Teleurac's direction, Luxray shot out small sparkling balls of electricity, which burst open into crackling mists that created an Electric Terrain.

"Hydro Pump," Serena told Greninja. She was starting to feel a little lightheaded.

Greninja shot Hydro Pump, which hit Luxray in the face and did some damage, but left it standing upright and soaking wet. Luxray then shot Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt, trying to hit Greninja as he gracefully and quickly jumped in circles around his opponent to avoid being hit. He launched a few Water Shurikens at Luxray, but only one of them hit. Luxray's mane sparked and crackled, and it let loose a violent burst of Thunder that struck Greninja. Despite a few electrical burns, Greninja was still barely conscious, and Serena recalled him to his Pokeball in favor of Meowstic.

"Meowstic, use Psychic!" From the small organs on the inside of her ears, Meowstic emitted a burst of powerful psychic energy, which hit Luxray and toppled it onto the ground.

Lapras came next. "Sheer Cold!" was what Teleurac ordered, and Lapras hit Meowstic with chilling, piercing winds and ice at absolute zero temperatures. Even though she wasn't hit herself, Serena felt the harsh cold of the attack that fainted Meowstic in one hit. Meowstic's unconscious form was still covered in patches of frost and ice as Serena recalled her to her Pokeball.

Serena glanced up at the timer on the large red screen. She had thirty minutes to defeat Teleurac in battle and do something about that cannon. She sent out Ampharos, who swatted at the crackling mist of the Electric Terrain at her feet. "Use Thunder, Ampharos!" she cried, and Ampharos brought down a powerful bolt of lightning on Lapras.

"Lapras, use Sheer Cold again!" shouted Teleurac. This time, though, Lapras's attack missed, and he cursed under his breath.

"Ampharos, Thunder!" said Serena. That attack fainted Lapras; after recalling his fallen Pokemon, Teleurac looked at the last two Pokeballs on his belt in contemplation before deciding on sending out his Talonflame. Both humans called out directions to their Pokemon: Brave Bird from Teleurac, and Thunder from Serena. Talonflame was faster, flying towards Ampharos at breakneck speed and ramming into her front. Ampharos got up quickly from the attack, although there was a shallow scratch on her abdomen resulting from Talonflame's beak making contact with her. Talonflame flew in a circle back to its Trainer's side, slower than usual from recoil damage and paralysis brought about by hitting Ampharos's body.

When Ampharos brought down Thunder, she fainted Talonflame with that one hit. Serena smirked; Teleurac should have known better than to send a Flying-type out against an Electric-type . . . and then her jaw dropped when his next and final Pokemon, Aggron, emerged.

She was beginning to see why he had saved Aggron for last – especially when he pressed the stone set in his Mega Ring. Her focus was slipping away as her head swam in dizziness, her shoulder and chest still hurt where she had been slashed by Liepard, the warm wet blood oozing from her wound was still trickling down her front, and the bright swirls of pink light made her feel slightly nauseated.

Serena got a good look at Mega Aggron, gigantic and armored, and she muttered "Oh shit."

"Aggron, use Earthquake!" said Teleurac. One heavy stomp was all it took for Aggron to trigger the attack, shaking the ground under everyone's feet and opening a hole in the ground under Ampharos's feet. Ampharos fell into the hole, where she was shaken and knocked around by the quaking earth, and by the time the attack ended she had fainted.

As Serena brought Ampharos back into her Pokeball, she realized that she too had one Pokemon left that could battle. She tossed out Charizard's ball, and once Charizard was out, Serena pressed the stone set in her Mega Ring. She closed her eyes so that the pink lights of Mega Evolution would not bother her, and opened them again when she heard the terrifying roar of Mega Charizard.

"You have strong Pokemon, Serena," commented Teleurac as he looked over Charizard, noting her newly blackened scales and the blue flames spouting from the sides of her mouth. "Aggron, use Iron Tail!"

Aggron turned, swinging its massive tail towards Charizard, who jumped into the air and hovered in place to avoid the attack.

"Fire Blast!" cried Serena, and she watched as the brilliant display of blue flames erupted from her Pokemon's mouth to hit Charizard. Aggron turned its back and stooped slightly, arms in front of its head, letting the Fire Blast strike it on the armor on its back. When Fire Blast died out, Serena saw that the steel plates on Aggron's back had wisps of smoke rising from them.

Next, Teleurac told Aggron to use Iron Head. Aggron stood up straight and jutted its head up and forward, striking Charizard in the stomach. Charizard fell backwards some, but she landed on the ground on both feet and exhaled, letting out a puff of fire.

"Blast Burn!" was Serena's next command. Charizard let loose a massive spread of fire, much larger than what Typhlosion had used on Lucario, and it seamlessly changed in color from blue to red and orange as it enveloped Aggron. The flames were gone just as quickly as they appeared, and Aggron was still standing, even though it was singed and blackened in places and its breathing was a ragged panting.

Aggron then used Earthquake, which damaged Charizard and caused her to stumble some, but at the end she was still standing with some scratches and bruises on her body.

Serena then realized that Charizard would need to recharge some after letting loose Blast Burn. By the time she had, Aggron had hit Charizard with Iron Tail. She glanced over to the timer: twenty minutes left . . . .

Charizard was doubled over, breathing heavily, with a shallow gash across her abdomen where Iron Tail had hit. Serena held eye contact with her Pokemon for a moment; for a split second, she saw the small cuddly Charmander Augustine had entrusted her with. She saw the Charmeleon who stood victorious after her gym battle with Ramos, very proud of herself and her abilities. She remembered lazy days just flying with Charizard, looking down on the world below her as it passed by. If Charizard could read her mind, she would tell Charizard of how proud she was, how much she loved her and her teammates, how she would not let anything separate them ever again. In Charizard's eyes, she saw fatigue and a determination to win, as if the Pokemon understood her freedom and livelihood were on the line.

Without even waiting for any direction, Charizard turned back to Aggron and let loose another Fire Blast. The five-pointed flaming formation grew larger and larger as it shot towards Aggron, hitting its target head on and breaking apart in a burst of flames. Fire Blast had done it, for Aggron soon fell and shook the ground as it hit the floor hard.

"AARGH!" Teleurac howled as he recalled Aggron. He glared at Serena for a moment, but then his expression softened. "So you proved yourself superior to me in battle. What did you hope to accomplish with that?"

"Power down the weapon," said Serena, trying to sound fierce and intimidating although her voice had lost support.

Teleurac laughed. "I don't think I will," he said as he reached to undo his tie. "You could do it yourself if you knew the proper authorization code, but you don't. And there's no way I'm telling you what it is."

Serena looked towards the reactor, then glanced at Charizard.

"Break that open, and you'll release fatal levels of radiation. None of us could survive it, and I would very much like to live to see my Roselie again." By the time he finished speaking, he had undone his tie and slid it off from around his neck. He had it gripped in his hands at both ends, and he gave Serena a purposefully deadly look.

"So what have you accomplished, Serena? Nothing. You can't escape from here, you can't stop the attack on Castelia – look at you! You can barely stand up straight right now! You will bleed to death before the night is over, but I can make sure your life is saved. All you have to do is ask."

Serena bit her lip, realizing that he was right. However, she knew the unspoken assumption: that if she asked him for that, she would very likely return to prison and be forever under his heel.

"I would rather die trying to stop you," she spat defiantly, although her voice was growing weaker.

"Then allow me to put you out of your misery."

Suddenly, Teleurac lunged at Serena with his arms stretched out in front of him, and he swiftly wrapped his tie around her neck, pulling it as taut as it could go. Serena let out a gasp as her hands flew to his chest, balled up in fists and feebly beating against him as she felt her airways cut off, and the stinging pain of the tie as it pressed and dug into her skin. Her hands then moved to the tie, scratching at it and her neck, trying to pull it away even a millimeter as she kept gasping for air and she started to feel dizzy.

"Ask for mercy and I'll give it to you!" hissed Teleurac. His eyes, blazing and furious were what Serena focused on as the rest of the world went black around her. For a split second, she considered asking for mercy from him – and then he abruptly moved away from her. The tie fell out of his hands as Charizard grabbed the back of his jacket and yanked him away from Serena, and the Pokemon raised him higher into the air and slam-dunked him into the ground. Serena fell to all fours; she coughed and kept gasping for air until she breathed in short breaths, and although she felt very dizzy her vision slowly returned to her. With one hand, she clutched gently at her neck, flinching her fingers back after they came into contact with a tender area that still hurt from where the tie had pressed into it.

Charizard roared ferociously at Teleurac, who was just getting back on his feet.

"Kill me . . . who will . . . Mega Evolve my Pokemon?" asked Serena in a hoarse voice.

"They can be taught to bond with some other Trainer. I think Augustine will be up to the challenge," said Teleurac gravely. Serena watched as he started walking back towards her, and then glanced at the timer on the wall to see that there were eighteen minutes left before the cannon fired. He had the tie in his hands, held and bared at the front of his body. Charizard roared again, and when she made the connection concerning what Teleurac intended to do, she let loose a Fire Blast at him.

Serena's jaw dropped. Although her head still swam and her vision was blurry, she could distinguish the shapes and movements of Teleurac as he ran towards Charizard with flames trailing off of his body. He screamed and cried in anguish, tripping and falling onto his stomach just as Charizard stepped out of his reach. Continuing to shriek horribly, he rolled and writhed about the ground as his clothes burned away and his skin blackened, and as he rolled about the Pokeballs containing his Pokemon disconnected from his person and rolled away, crackling and popping as they did. Finally, he stopped moving, and Serena looked on at the charred mass of a human body in front of her that still burned, stunned by what she had just watched. She didn't snap back into reality until an ominous computerized voice boomed over the PA system:

_"Attention: Launch at Castelia City in fifteen minutes."_


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N:** There won't be another update for a couple of weeks since I'll be out of town and away from my computer that time. If you have finals coming up, study well for them and good luck!

Tony and victini3464: I accept your apology. However, please stop spamming the review section. I am now moderating all guest reviews, and I will only approve ones that are actual reviews of the story. If you want to tell the epic tale of Tony and his army of Legendaries, perhaps one of you should create a account and post it. That way, more people would be able to read and enjoy it.

* * *

><p><strong>THIRTY<strong>

00:14:59 . . . 00:14:58 . . . .

Serena still stared, mesmerized, at the dying embers that surrounded what was left of Teleurac, while Charizard stood over her Trainer protectively. She hadn't wanted him to die – there would be explaining to do, he definitely deserved to answer for his deeds to the world, and she couldn't believe Charizard was capable of this. She could still feel the heat from those deadly flames, even after they had long died out. When the smoke rising from the remains and the stench of burning flesh became too much for her, she turned her head away, wheezing and letting out retching coughs.

With Charizard's help, she slowly rose to her feet and walked over to the control station next to the large red display screen, stumbling with almost each step.

00:13:45 . . . 00:13:44 . . . .

There were too many buttons, switches, and screens. None of them were labeled, just different sizes and shades of green and orange, and she hadn't the slightest clue of what they did. Why couldn't there just be a red button and a blue button, like there was three years ago?

One wide screen on the control station showed a map of Unova and Kalos, with green blinking dots over where the major cities were and a red one over Castelia. She was really starting to feel her lightheadedness again, and she gripped onto the edge of the panel to stay standing. Her front was now almost completely covered in dark, shimmering blood, and some was still trickling out of the laceration across her shoulder and chest. She told herself to focus, to think, to at least stay conscious long enough to figure out how to turn this thing off. If she died, she wanted people to remember her as a hero.

00:11:23 . . . 11:22 . . . .

Teleurac had said that an authorization code was needed to abort the launch sequence, and that information most likely died with him. She'd answer for his death some other time, gladly take the credit for assassinating him, but now was not the time to worry about that. They'd really have her for this, she thought. That is, if they found her alive. Malva would probably assume the role of Governor, and Team Flare would keep control of Kalos. But would they want to continue the war?

00:11:03 . . . 00:11:02 . . . .

If she couldn't stop the launch, then perhaps she could pick a new target. Where could she manually enter coordinates, to fire the weapon into the ocean or some other remote location? Then she could find someone to heal her Pokemon, perhaps treat her wound, and she could properly destroy the cannon. Team Flare could just build another one, though.

There was a panel next to the map where one could manually enter coordinates . . . but doing so required an authorization code. She tried a few random sequences of numbers, none of which worked, until she took her attention back to the map.

Her finger tapped against the screen showing the map of Unova and Kalos, right above the blinking light that corresponded with Mistralton City. A message flashed across the screen: TARGET – MISTRALTON CITY. "No," she hissed, seeing that Mistralton's dot had turned red, like Castelia's previously was. She then tapped on the screen again, in the blank space corresponding with the bay south of Castelia City. The message that next flashed on the screen read NOT A VIABLE TARGET. Those words flashed again when she tapped the northernmost tip of the mountain range that separated the two regions, and then again when she tapped out on the ocean past Azure Bay. It hit her: the weapon had to be preprogrammed to only attack cities. A huge pit formed in her stomach, and her heart beat faster.

00:09:38 . . . 00:09:37 . . . .

Aspertia was still shown as a target on the screen, but she didn't want to fire it there. Presumably, there had been survivors of the attack, even if the city itself had been flattened. Despair soon hit Serena; no way to stop the firing, no way to survive the radiation released if Charizard broke open the reactor, no way to get out of the facility in time to rip the cannon off of Prism Tower or the Pokemon power to do so. And no matter what she did, it still wouldn't solve the Team Flare problem in Kalos. They could just rebuild the reactor, or anything she destroyed before she finally gave out. How could she oust them when their grip on Lumiose - and all of Kalos - was so tight, and she was barely conscious?

_The cannon._

Holding her breath, not letting herself think about anything else other than the need to destroy the cannon, Serena raised her sweaty clammy hand and tapped the dot on the screen and watched, horrified with herself, as the dot turned red and the message flashed: TARGET – LUMIOSE CITY.

00:08:16 . . . 00:08:15 . . . .

Serena then fell to the floor, no longer able to hold herself up. She landed on her hipbone, winced at the pain, but then saw there was a lone Full Restore under the panel. She grasped it gingerly, pulling it close to her, and shifted her body to face Charizard, who had bent down to her level.

"Charizard," she said weakly as she turned her body around, leaning against the panel and undoing her Pokeball belt. Charizard leaned her head in closer, and Serena fastened the belt around her Pokemon's neck. She remained there for a moment, tightly hugging Charizard, before treating Charizard with the Full Restore. Charizard helped Serena climb onto her back, then she rose into the air and flew out of the room, down the hall and turning left at an intersection of hallways.

00:06:57 . . . 00:06:56 . . . .

Serena didn't think there would be a means of flying out of the facility, but she did not want to be in that central room when the weapon's fire came crashing down. Still being in the facility also felt like a bad idea, yet putting some distance between her and Charizard and the reactor seemed ideal, especially since she couldn't think of a means to escape. There was no articulate, logical reason why, but Serena did not want to die inside that central room.

The actual flying went by in a hazy blur as she focused on clinging to Charizard, but her grip soon loosened and she slid off her Pokemon's back, falling hard on the floor and landing on her side.

There was a throbbing in her head, and a hard pain localized at where it had hit the floor. The world was fading in and out, alternating between the cold white lights of the hallway and the blackness of oblivion. Charizard landed on the ground next to Serena and stooped over her.

"No . . . go," she croaked, concentrating on the blue flames streaming from Charizard's mouth. "You and the others . . . stay together . . . find my friends . . . ."

Her friends. Had they made it out of the city all right? If not, she had doomed them. She had doomed everyone in Lumiose, all in a sloppy effort to end Team Flare and the war they had started. She thought briefly of her mother, learning the news that her daughter's body had been found in the ruins of the once great city, and tears welled up in her eyes. It hurt, wanting to see her mom again, wanting to be held and cradled like a baby, wanting to be told that she would be okay, knowing that it wouldn't happen.

"Charizard, please . . . save yourself," Serena pleaded, pushing herself up slightly onto her elbows and looking up at her Pokemon.

00:05:00 . . . 00:04:59 . . . .

A low, sad whimper escaped from Charizard's mouth. Charizard shook her head and bent further over Serena, kneeling down and bringing her wings forward to fully envelop the top half of her Trainer's body. Serena brought her knees in, curling up in a ball and leaning against Charizard. She reflected on her life, on all she had seen and done in twenty-one short years: her younger brother Sam and his premature death, her parents' divorce, moving from Kanto to Kalos on a whim because her mother couldn't stand to live there anymore, meeting her friends, her adventure with Pokemon, becoming Champion, the beautiful Kalosian countryside, cafes and baked goods, the sparkling blue waters of Azure Bay, dancing into the wee hours of the morning, kisses that tasted like coffee and vanilla, sandalwood and cinnamon cologne . . . . there should have been more time for all of that. So much more time. She needed a chance to clear the air between herself and Augustine, or to forgive her dad for tearing their family apart, or to really let her mother know just how much she was loved and appreciated

A tiny hopeful voice in Serena's head told her that there was still a chance. Charizard might just pick her up again and start flying until she found a ventilation shaft big enough for her. Her friends would arrive just in the nick of time. However, as her body grew weaker and weaker, that small hoping voice died out with a whimper.

At least they would all be together, she thought about herself and her Pokemon. The others who were fainted – they would simply never wake up. She'd never get another warm hug from Ampharos, or go swim with Greninja, and Noivern – _Noivern_. She had let him follow her from Terminus Cave, into the unknown on only an unspoken promise to fight Team Flare, and she led him to death. Her Pokemon, who had loved and trusted and worked with and played with her, were going to die, and it was her fault. She had to be the worst Trainer to ever live.

00:02:09 . . . 00:02:08 . . . .

Consciousness was slipping away, and she heard Charizard cry softly. Serena rested a hand on Charizard and stroked the scaly skin underneath with her fingers, and she started to sing softly as tears cascaded down her face.

"_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine."_

00:01:45 . . . 00:01:44 . . . .

"_You make me happy when skies are gray."_

00:01:27 . . . 00:01:26 . . . .

"_You'll never know friend . . . h-how much I love you."_ Her voice cracked as each breath became more shallow and harder to carry out. Through her almost-shut eyelids, she felt the warmth and glow of Charizard's flames, an ethereal blue that was almost like the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.

00:00:29 . . . 00:00:28 . . . .

"_Please don't take my sunshine uh-"_

Serena's eyes closed, and everything faded away.

00:00:03 . . . 00:00:02 . . . 00:00:01 . . . 00:00:00.


	31. Chapter 31

**THIRTY-ONE**

On the third basement floor of the old Lysandre Laboratories, Augustine watched the ceiling nervously. Shauna and Calem were huddled together, and the Professor threw himself protectively over them. The three of them were on their way when they heard an earsplitting _boom_ and decided to duck for cover. What followed was a violent rumble of the earth rolling across where they were, sounding almost like a train passing by.

"What was that?" Shauna squeaked once everything was still.

"The cannon," said Augustine as he peeled himself away from his former students. "It was pointing straight into the sky last I saw –" He stopped suddenly. Teleurac wouldn't try to destroy Lumiose, would he? And Serena – where was she? What had become of her?

"But why would Team Flare . . . ?" Calem's voice trailed off.

Augustine stepped up to the elevator and pressed a button to open the doors. Inside, he found an empty shaft, and when he looked up he saw a mess of wood, metal, wires, and other debris crammed into the top of the shaft.

He took a few steps back and sent out Garchomp. "See what you can do," he said to Garchomp, pointing towards the elevator shaft. Garchomp flew up and into the shaft, and a few seconds later debris came falling down, hitting the walls of the shaft and landing at the bottom with a loud crash.

Garchomp soon returned to where Augustine, Shauna, and Calem were, and he allowed the humans to climb onto his back. Back up the shaft he flew, and he touched down in Magenta Plaza – or what was left of it.

Shauna and Calem both gasped loudly, while Augustine's jaw dropped and his eyes grew wide at the sight before them. The purple obelisk that once stood erect in the center of the plaza now lay on the ground in several pieces, the largest of which was on top of a human body. Dust and smoke filled the air. In the glow of fires around the city, the three of them saw rubble of buildings, debris and glass shrapnel lying in the streets, smoke rising from those fires, and a crater in the place Prism Tower once occupied. The tower itself lay in dirty, blackened, mangled pieces around and inside the crater, as did the cannon once attached to it. More burned, blackened rubble lined the edges of the crater, apparently obscuring the way into Team Flare's underground facility - assuming any of it was left, of course.

Someone shrieked in the distance. Calem slid off Garchomp, pulling Shauna along with him, and the two ran in the direction of that distressed person. Still stunned by the sight around him, Augustine hopped off and recalled Garchomp before standing still, transfixed by a fire burning on top of where several houses used to be. He heard more people shouting, screaming, calling out for help or a loved one, and the cries of some Pokemon. A Trainer, blood running down the side of her head, crawled out from beneath some rubble and sent out her Clawitzer, who shot water at the nearby fire to put it out.

His gaze lingered, absentmindedly, at the ruins of Centrico Plaza and Prism Tower. Augustine was in a daze, thinking only hazily of what could have possibly caused Teleurac to change his mind, or under which pile of rubble he might find Serena's remains. Of course, there was always the chance she made it out in time . . . .

"Professor!" Augustine looked to see Calem and Shauna running back towards him, Holo Casters in their hands.

"Where did you run off to?" he asked them, noting the dirt and sweat smudged on their faces.

"The others are okay," Calem said, out of breath but holding up his Holo Caster. "Tierno, Trevor, Diantha – they're fine."

"Well, Trevor's arm was broken," Shauna added. "They took shelter in a dumpster, and it got turned over during the blast . . . but Tierno and Diantha flew him to the hospital in Shalour City. Lumiose's hospital was destroyed."

Augustine sighed, both in relief and in sorrow. "We should go –"

He was distracted by the sound of a Pokemon roaring, and he turned to look at Centrico Plaza, where he guessed the roar originated. A fan of flames, blue and orange, erupted from the inner edge of the crater, blasting pieces of debris out of the way. A Pokemon emerged: winged, with a black body and blue flames trailing out of the corners of its mouth. It took a few seconds for Augustine to recognize the Pokemon as a Mega Evolved Charizard.

Charizard rose into the air, flying low to the ground at first but rapidly gaining altitude as she flew northwest as fast as she could go. The flames in her mouth and on her tail cast an ethereal blue light around her, enough to show that she was cradling a limp, lifeless figure in her arms as she flew.

Even if Augustine only caught a brief glimpse of it, there was no missing that long blonde hair. His heart instantly dropped into his stomach, and his eyes followed Charizard's flight path until the flame on the end of her tail was as small and distant-looking as the stars in the sky.

"Was that – oh my – SERENA!" Shauna cried out her friend's name, started running after Charizard, but then stopped after she only went a few yards. Calem sent out Altaria and climbed onto his Pokemon's back; the two of them flew to pick up Shauna, and they all took off to follow Charizard.

Augustine fell to his knees and looked up to the northwestern sky. Everything else faded away: the burning remains of Lumiose, the corpse underneath the Magenta Plaza obelisk, the cold evening air on his skin, heat from nearby fires, the smells of organic and synthetic materials burning – none of it existed, and none of it mattered. He hung in a daze for a moment, feeling numb and shocked all at once, but he couldn't quite articulate _why_, not even to himself. All he knew was that he needed to follow Calem and Shauna, who were in turn following Charizard, who was taking Serena away somewhere. And he needed to know _where_.

* * *

><p>Shalour City's hospital was a sleek ten-story building located behind the city's Gym. Just as Garchomp was landing outside the hospital, so were several other Trainers on the backs of their Pokemon. Augustine joined the newly arrived crowd and went with them to the emergency ward, helping one Trainer carry her injured friend as they went. Once inside, a team of doctors and nurses took the casualties, sat them down on gurneys, wheeled them away, and instructed everyone else to go to the waiting room.<p>

In the crowded waiting room, he found the people he knew. Shauna and Calem were snuggled under a blanket together, with her head leaning on his shoulder. Trevor sat between Calem and Tierno, with his right forearm bound up in a cast. Emma sat next to Tierno, Mimi the Espurr on her lap, while Sedna and Nix of the Lumiose Gang sat in front of her on the floor with their heads together. Diantha was the only one standing, and she paced back and forth a few steps in each direction.

"Augustine?" Diantha recognized him, her tired-looking eyes lighting up slightly. Her clothing, usually so clean and bright, was covered in a layer of dirt and grime, with some blood on the cuffs of her sleeves and the front of her blouse. It was then that he saw what was in her dainty, scratched-up hands: a Pokeball belt, with six Pokeballs attached to it.

He stepped forward and pulled Diantha into his arms, hugging his friend tightly and rocking her from side to side, not caring how she smelled faintly of blood and garbage. After a few seconds, Diantha pushed herself away from him, letting him see how her eyes were starting to glisten with tears.

"What?" he asked softly, dreading her response. That Pokeball belt in her hands looked very familiar.

"Serena . . . She's in surgery right now," said Diantha, choked up and working hard to keep from breaking into a fresh new wave of tears.

He looked down at his feet, curling his lips in and holding his breath. She was still alive – or at least she was when Charizard made it here. Charizard was very smart, he thought fondly, to know to bring Serena here. "How is it going?" he asked apprehensively.

"I don't know anything else," answered Diantha. "But I saw her, Augustine, and there was so much blood," she glanced down at the cuffs of her sleeves, splattered with dark red. "The doctors – they'll let us know when something happens." She shifted Serena's Pokeball belt into one hand and used the other to steer Augustine towards a seat next to Emma. First, he stopped in front of Trevor.

"Have you heard from your sister, Trevor?" he asked.

Trevor nodded, slow and tired. "She's in Laverre, with her boyfriend. They're fine."

With a weak smile, he patted Trevor gently on the shoulder, then Tierno, before sitting down by Emma. Mimi greeted him with a "Mrrrrow!"

"How are you doing, Emma?" Augustine asked her as he absentmindedly patted the top of Mimi's head.

"I'm fine," said Emma, sounding appropriately stunned and exhausted. "Eris is with a doctor right now. Her legs got crushed by a falling beam in the Looker Bureau."

"We jumped into the basement right when we saw it coming. She was the last one in, and she barely made it," commented Nix.

"This is all so weird," said Sedna, her voice even and entranced. "Almost like it's a bad dream or sumthin' like that."

"Professor, you work for Team Flare, dontcha? Why'd they decide to blow up Lumiose, huh?" asked Nix.

Augustine shook his head, then let it drop into his hands. Teleurac had never said anything at all about firing on cities in Kalos, so what in the man's mind could have possibly changed at the last minute? Had he just given up on everything he had envisioned? Did his fingers merely stray?

"Hey, Professor Sycamore," Trevor said next, leaning forward so he could see Augustine. "You okay?"

"As okay as it gets," murmured Augustine.

* * *

><p>It felt like the longest night in Augustine's life. As time went by, the waiting room became fuller and more crowded, and the group all gave up their seats to others and sat alongside the wall opposite of the room's lone television. The TV was turned on to a news station, which showed nonstop coverage of what happened in Lumiose. There were shots of Centrico Plaza and the remains of Prism Tower, the lone standing column of Hotel Richissme, the story of Trainers who rescued the stray Skiddo from the rubble of the train station, scenes of people and Pokemon working together to pull survivors and casualties out of rubble and put out fires, and many desperate people looking into the camera with pleading eyes, asking what had happened or where their loved ones were. Every thirty minutes, there was an update on the number of casualties: two hundred, then three hundred and twenty, then three hundred and ninety, the four hundred and fifty. As the number climbed higher and higher – up to sixteen hundred by midnight – Augustine's heart sank lower and lower while it crumbled into pieces.<p>

Shortly after midnight, a doctor came out and asked for people willing and able to donate blood, since their supply was running low. With the exception of Trevor, everyone in their little group volunteered to do so (Trevor stayed behind with Mimi while Emma went). At one in the morning, Augustine was sitting and leaning against their section of wall, bandage wrapped tight around his left arm above the elbow, a bag of pretzels in his hand and a light, woozy feeling in his head. He hated needles. He hated having blood drawn, and apparently so did Tierno; the poor lad had nearly passed out in the process. Emma had let Tierno lean against her until his lightheaded feeling had passed, and she held his bottle of water for him. Meanwhile, Mimi snuggled with Sedna and Nix.

At one-thirty in the morning, two police officers entered the emergency ward and went to speak to the receptionist. The receptionist pointed them to the hall where the patients' and operating rooms were, and they went that way. Augustine watched them curiously for a moment, until Shauna came around and knelt in front of him.

"You've been really quiet, Professor," she said concernedly.

Augustine nodded in agreement. "I still can't believe this happened," he said mournfully. By the receptionist's desk, a doctor was speaking to a middle-aged man, and the man's head soon bowed and his body shook with sobs.

"Me neither," said Shauna. "Almost two thousand people and Pokemon dead . . . just . . . _wow_. Calem and I are going to find someplace quiet to take a short nap, then the four of us are going to fly to Vaniville. To let our parents know we're all right, and to go get Grace." Her voice wilted at the mention of Serena's mother.

"She ought to know," said Augustine, giving Shauna a faint, feeble smile. She returned the gesture, then left to rejoin Calem's side.

At two in the morning, the newscaster reported the first things uncovered underneath the ruins of Centrico Plaza. Besides broken glass, metal, machinery, and some radioactive material, pieces of a burned human body were found underground, and a quick DNA test proved that the body was Governor Teleurac's. When the news broke, many in the emergency room cheered and clapped. Augustine felt a tremendous weight melt off his chest: he was free. Or was he?

Other bodies found underground belonged to members of Team Flare and their Pokemon, including the scientists Celosia and Bryony. Some other Flare members had been trapped in rubble and were being rescued and held in the custody of Pokemon Trainers led by the Gym Leader Clemont and the two "Masked Heroes of Kalos." Augustine smiled slightly, seeing his trusty lab assistants were doing fine. Police Chief Renshaw had been found dead, her body crushed by an overturned police car. Malva's whereabouts were currently unknown, although a witness claimed to have seen her fly away on the back of her Talonflame.

What followed was a break from serious news reporting, and some analysts discussing and offering ideas on _why_ Teleurac would suddenly change his mind and attack his own people rather than Unova. Augustine cringed when one analyst suggested that Teleurac "graduated from the same school of crazy that Lysandre did." Whatever the reason, they concluded, it had only cost the man his life.

At three in the morning, Eris came into the waiting room in a wheelchair, her legs bound up in bulky casts and braces and boots. Emma, Mimi, Sedna, and Nix sprang to their feet to greet Eris, giving her hugs and kisses on the cheek. The Lumiose Gang then left the hospital, Nix saying something about finding a room at Shalour's hotel for the evening. Others began trickling out of the emergency ward's waiting room, either to completely leave the hospital or to go wait downstairs in the cafeteria so more space could be freed up in the waiting room for some who were still coming in.

On the news, a woman in Anistar City was starting to give an address. Her name was Claire Pontmercy, and she was stepping up to become the Governor of Kalos now that Teleurac had died without appointing a successor. Augustine remembered her as the other candidate in that fateful gubernatorial election; he didn't think she had any precedence or right to do this according to the second or third article of the Constitution of Kalos . . . but politics seemed inconsequential right now. The only thing that mattered to him was that Serena pulled through.

At three forty-five in the morning, Trevor and Tierno left to find Calem and Shauna, while Diantha slept on the floor with one arm folded under her head and the other arm wrapped securely around Serena's Pokeball belt. Augustine, however, stood up for the first time in hours. He walked over to the nearest window and looked out at the city. Usually, there was an eerie feeling of serenity in the air at this hour, but not tonight. There were people and Pokemon crowding around the outside of the hospital and Pokemon Center, using flashlights or the light emitted from a Pokemon using Flash to keep a check on their surroundings and allow emergency crews to go around, passing out food, water, and blankets to those who had arrived from Lumiose. Triage stations had also been set up, manned by nurses and Audino. He saw Calem and Shauna out there, giving away their jackets and blanket before flying south on Altaria's back. Trevor and Tierno followed them: the former on Aerodactyl, and the latter on Talonflame.

How long had it been? Almost seven hours now? Augustine was trying to remember back to when there was life and a time before this, for in a strange way it was starting to feel like this was all that there had ever been. Battling Malva alongside Diantha, Garchomp's Mega Evolution, riding to Geosenge in the truck, the last time he had seen Serena – it all felt like some distant dream. Or maybe _this _was the dream, and he would wake up in last October with a brilliant new idea about Mega Evolution and call Serena to come in and help him with the experiment – naturally he would treat her to a nice dinner afterwards – and Alexandre Teleurac would just be another pompous politician who didn't live up to his campaign promises, and all would be right in the world.

Yet this _wasn't_ a dream. The scene before him was far too real: people watching the news on TV with looks of horror on their faces and tears in their eyes, hugging and holding onto one another amidst reports of dead children and destroyed homes. He watched as a woman received news from a doctor, and then burst into tears of joy at the news that her son would be all right.

At four thirty in the morning, it all finally settled in. Lumiose City was _gone_. The city he lived in, the city he loved, everything he had known, his laboratory and life's work, his favorite cafes, the iconic tower in the city's center where he had hoped to one day ask the woman of his dreams to marry him – all lay in ashes and ruin now. Augustine sat back down, bowing his head and holding it in his hands so nobody else would know he was silently crying.

The emergency ward's waiting room was still bustling and crowded at five in the morning. People, disheveled and covered in sweat, dirt, and blood, sat and stood contrasted against the cold and bleak white walls and floors. It was strangely quiet, with many people asleep in their chairs or on the floor; those still awake spoke in whispers and murmurs among each other, creating what felt like an uneasy buzz in the air. Doctors and nurses kept moving in and out as fast as they could, powering through and doing the best they could to hide just how tired and stressed they were by the whole ordeal. One nurse's face was red and blotchy, as if he had just taken a private moment to weep. Augustine had watched them all night, patiently, wondering when any news about Serena was ready to be shared. He kept alternating between expecting good news and expecting bad news.

Never in his life had he wanted good news so badly. Serena was down in Team Flare's facility when the weapon fired – did she know why Teleurac changed his mind? Had she tried to stop him? He should have been down there with her, Augustine thought. He should have flown straight to Lumiose instead of heading for the prison, and perhaps he may have caught up to her in time. He and Garchomp should have tried to dismantle the cannon . . . . He should have never handed her over to Team Flare in the first place. There was no way of telling if that could have saved Lumiose, but at least she would be with him, no matter what happened.

At five thirty in the morning, another doctor emerged and stood by the receptionist's desk. "Is anyone here a family member or friend of Serena Carlyle?" the doctor called out.

Almost instantly after the doctor spoke, Augustine was by her side. This doctor had dark circles under her eyes and a surgical mask hanging limply around her neck, and strands of flyaway hair were poking out from under her cap.

"Professor Sycamore," said the doctor with a tired cordiality, "how are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," said Augustine hastily. "Serena?" Every part of his body felt tense and queasy, apprehension took hold, and he searched the doctor's face for any indication of what the verdict may be.

The doctor sighed. "Serena's out of surgery and in recovery right now –"

All of the tension and uneasiness inside of him instantly vanished, and his mouth curved into a relieved smile. He didn't hear the doctor when she was describing exactly what was wrong medically with Serena that had been fixed. Instead, he existed in this brief trance of happiness, which was only broken by one sentence.

"Since technically she is still a criminal, she has been temporarily put into police custody and she won't be allowed visitors for the time being."

"A-ah," was all Augustine managed to croak out in response to that. "But – thank you, doctor. So much. I actually don't think I can thank you enough for this, ever."

The doctor smiled faintly. "You're welcome, Professor. If anything else changes regarding Serena, I'll let you know." She then turned and went back down the hall.

Augustine walked back to the wall where Diantha slept, where she was starting to stir. She slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position, rubbed her eyes, and watched as Augustine dropped to his knees beside her.

Diantha looked over his face, seeing his tired smile and the tears welling up in his eyes, and she pulled him into a tight hug. Augustine hugged her back and buried his face in her shoulder, all the while murmuring "She made it" repeatedly. He felt Diantha's fingertips stroke his hair, and he let out a contented sigh.

When Diantha pulled away, Augustine saw that she had started to cry as well. "No visitors yet, I assume?" she asked, reaching out a hand to scoop up Serena's Pokeball belt.

Augustine shook his head, and he looked at the belt. "No, not yet. The police have taken her into custody, so . . . ."

"Ah! Well then." Diantha grabbed her purse, opened it, and stuffed Serena's belt inside. "If anyone asks where her Pokemon are, I don't know . . . . I should give Phoebe a call. Right before you arrived, she had called asking if I was all right, and I told her to stay put in Coumarine. I'm going to call her and let her know I'm still doing all right." She smiled, gave Augustine a light peck on the cheek, then dug through her purse for her Holo Caster.

As Diantha chatted softly with her girlfriend, Augustine let his body sink to the ground until he was laying on his side, knees drawn up to his chest. The floor was hard and cold, he felt cold, but he didn't care. The whole matter of Serena still being a prisoner was something that could be sorted out later. But for now, she was alive, and he would see her soon. At the very least, he wanted to tell her how he felt, and how truly sorry he was.

At six in the morning, Augustine finally drifted off to sleep.


	32. Chapter 32

**THIRTY-TWO**

Serena surveyed all of the things attached to her body. There was the tube running across her face, under her nose, that had helped her breathe before she woke up. There was the needle inserted in her arm that pumped nutrients into her body intravenously. There were little sensors taped to her body keeping track of her heart rate. There were the bandages running up and down her arms, and the one wrapped around her head that was stained dark red over her temple. There were stitches on her cheek, and stitches holding together her chest and shoulder where she had been slashed by Liepard. There was a bandage over her shin where Charizard had accidentally burned her while trying to get her to safety. Finally, there was the cold silver handcuff that secured her left wrist to her hospital bed.

"I wish they would go away," her nurse said while changing out bandages. The nurse was referring to the two police officers who stood outside the small hospital room, staring down everyone who walked by or glanced towards them. "This is a hospital, not a prison. You're not going anywhere."

"Except back to my cozy little cell," said Serena. She kept her eyes forward, at the blank TV which was mounted onto the wall opposite of her bed.

"I heard your friends are back, and your mother's with them," the nurse said, trying to sound encouraging and optimistic. Serena smiled sadly; it had been a relief to learn that her friends were safe and for the most part unharmed, but the idea that Grace was here afforded her little comfort.

"What's the point if I'm not allowed visitors?" Serena glanced to the closed door and the windows of the room that would allow her to look out into the hallway, if the curtains had not been shut.

Outside, she heard a woman speak a few stern words – all in Kalosian, and muffled due to the wall creating a barrier. Two men, presumably the police officers standing guard outside, said something in response. There was then a knock on the door.

The nurse looked at the door uncertainly and then said "Come in!"

A woman dressed in a blue suit entered the room, her dark hair pulled back into a very sleek ponytail that accentuated her strong jawline. There was a pin on her lapel, in the shape of the blue-white-and-red pentagon of Kalos. She immediately crossed the room, approaching Serena's left side as the nurse watched cautiously. In her hand was a small key, and in her other arm she held a vase full of colorful flowers.

"Excuse me for a moment," the nurse said, scooping up Serena's old bandages and scurrying out of the room.

"Good morning, Serena," the woman said, warm and polite although there was a steely look on her face. She set the vase on the nightstand, and then used the small key to undo the handcuff around Serena's wrist.

"Who are you?" Serena asked suspiciously, as she pulled her left hand in to her lap.

"My name is Claire Pontmercy. As of three o'clock this morning, I am the new Governor of Kalos – please don't look at me like that, Serena. I promise you, I'm not a member of any criminal or terrorist organization."

"That's an awfully fast regime change, though," commented Serena.

"When Governor Teleurac's death was announced, I had to act quickly. Setting up my office in Anistar City, asserting myself as Governor before anyone else from Team Flare did, starting to organize efforts to track the rest of them down – I've been a very busy woman." Pontmercy said with a slight tone of self-congratulation.

"Wait – Teleurac's dead?" Serena blurted out. She pondered on that for a minute, until the image of a man burning alive appeared in her head. "Oh, right . . . ." Charizard had done that, she recalled.

"He is. As is most of Team Flare. His body was found under Centrico Plaza, burnt to crisp and crushed to pieces . . . . Also, Serena, all charges against you have been dropped. You're free to go upon being discharged."

Serena exhaled heavily; for some reason, it didn't mean much to her. "And what do you want in return?" she asked.

Pontmercy snorted. "You're quite right to be suspicious of us politicians. Goodness knows we deserve it. But I don't want anything in return. Alexandre Teleurac saw you as a threat to his power-hungry, warmongering ways, so he tried to have you put away. Did he truly want to make Kalos a better place? I'll let the historians decide that one. But I see you as someone who truly loves Kalos and wants to do right by it. Am I correct?"

"Yes," agreed Serena, uncertain of the direction Pontmercy was going to go.

"However, I will invite you to hunt down the remainder of Team Flare with the task forces being put together, once you're out of the hospital and you feel up to it. Many were killed or scattered when that cannon atop Prism Tower fired on Lumiose City. Nobody knows what has become of Malva Pachira, but without her or Alexandre Teleurac I doubt they'll have an easy time regrouping."

"Count me in," said Serena instantly as she studied Pontmercy's face. Kalos's new Governor seemed all right – then again, that was her initial impression of Teleurac.

"The doctors said you were found in their headquarters underneath Centrico Plaza with your Charizard. Naturally, that's where you would be. The brave, noble Champion, doing all she could to protect the innocent from a madman – honorable, although it is unfortunate you failed," continued Pontmercy, leaning in slightly.

As Pontmercy spoke, Serena opened her mouth a few times to see if she could get some words in. The Governor's assessment of what happened felt off, and terribly wrong – Serena remembered the timer counting down, and a screen showing a map of Unova and Kalos, dots representing the major cities of those two regions, and the words "TARGET – LUMIOSE CITY."

Serena opened her mouth to speak one more time, just as Pontmercy finished checking her Holo Caster and reading a text message.

"I should go now . . . . Everyone you know and love is out in the waiting room, drawing straws to figure out the order in which they get to visit you. They all unanimously decided your mother would be first, of course . . . I wish you a fast and thorough recovery, Serena. _À bientôt._"

It then dawned on Serena, once she made connections of all the mental images in her head. The Team Flare facility, Teleurac's death, destroying Lumiose – that was all _her_. All of those who had died or were hurt had suffered because of what _she_ had done, and here she was, alive in the hospital. What a cruel joke the universe was playing.

* * *

><p>Less than a minute later, Grace Carlyle bolted into the room. She stopped in the doorway and steadied herself on it, taking a moment to gaze upon her bedridden daughter while clutching a hand to her mouth.<p>

"Mom?" Serena croaked as tears started to fall.

Grace's mouth formed a shaky smile as she swooped in and caught Serena in a tight, bone-crushing hug. Serena hugged her back, crying into her shoulder, as Grace rocked the two of them back and forth while murmuring "My girl, my precious baby girl, I've got you, you're okay." She surrendered herself to the secure, comforting embrace, feeling like a helpless child again who could only find security in her mother's arms. At the same time, she felt sick and tense; how many mothers had just lost their children, or children lost their mothers, thanks to her?

"You're too brave for your own good," Grace said as she gently pulled herself back to look at Serena.

"I-I just did what I thought was right," muttered Serena, hoping her mother would assume she was referring to standing up to Teleurac. In the meantime, Serena felt as if she was lying to herself.

"I know you did, honey," cooed Grace as she stroked her daughter's hair.

"Where – where are my Pokemon?" asked Serena anxiously.

"They're fine, honey. Diantha has them. She had to go to Coumarine today, but they're still with her. They're safe and healthy."

Smiling, Serena hugged Grace again.

"Sorry I missed Christmas," continued Serena in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Grace chortled. "You were a little busy, I hear. Don't worry. You can open your Christmas presents when we get home."

Serena nodded as she broke off the hug. "Sounds great, Mom . . . I won't be staying for long though. Claire Pontmercy – you know, the new Governor – wants me to go hunt down the rest of Team Flare with her."

"Ugh, that woman's a piece of work," whispered Grace. "Just up and declaring herself Governor like that before Teleurac's body was even cold. I guess it's a good thing she's finishing the ousting of Team Flare, but who gets to visit you in the hospital before your own mother?"

"I know, right? The first thing she told me was that she wasn't secretly a member of any villainous team. Watch her be Giovanni Razzozi's sister or something like that." Why they were bantering as if nothing had happened, Serena wondered. And would Grace still love her, even after learning her daughter was a mass murderer? Thinking about that made Serena feel queasy and slightly jittery.

"Team Rocket should know better than to try any funny business in Kalos. They'd have to deal with you! . . . You toe the line between bravery and recklessness, Serena. It makes me both proud and terrified, but I know you have a good heart who will always do the right thing."

Serena shook her head, and she felt another round of tears forming. "No Mom," she said, her voice shaking as she started to cry again. "Lumiose . . . that was me. I destroyed it."

"W-what?" gasped Grace, her eyes growing wide in disbelief. She shook her head, continuing to eye her daughter tentatively. "Serena – _no_ – you didn't –"

"Yes I did," sobbed Serena. "I had so little time left, and it was the only thing I could think of to destroy that cannon and save Castelia. But I destroyed one city to save another. I-I'm worse than Teleurac or Lysandre or any of them –"

"Shh, honey, no you're not," said Grace as she pulled Serena into another tight hug. Serena continued to weep heavily into her mother's shoulder, thinking about how she didn't deserve to be offered this comfort.

"How many are dead?" mewled Serena, her voice still muffled.

"Don't worry about that . . . Serena . . . I love you, always, I understand . . . you're not a bad person . . . you just did what you thought had to be done . . . it'll be okay, honey . . . ."

No it wouldn't, Serena thought. If Grace was refusing to say how many people and Pokemon died, then it must have been a really high number. Thousands? Tens of thousands? She didn't know how people would react once she told them what she had done. Perhaps she would still return to that prison cell.

She leaned back, pushing herself out of Grace's embrace. "Will everyone think I'm a bad person when I tell them the truth?" she asked while wiping her face dry with her hands.

"I was going to suggest that you let them all keep thinking it was Team Flare," said Grace, reaching out to run her fingers through Serena's hair.

"That's not fair," objected Serena. Lying by omission did sound enticing, though.

"I know, honey. I know. You're going to do what you think is right, like you always do . . . just, use discretion in how you handle it, okay? And as for whether or not people will think differently of you, we'll just have to wait and see." Grace offered another small, comforting smile. "But no matter what, I'll always love you."

* * *

><p>Somehow, the gang had managed to talk the nurse into letting all four of them visit Serena at once, instead of just one at a time. However they did it, it involved Shauna carrying in a tray of food while the boys followed behind her. Upon entering the hospital room, Shauna scurried over, placed the tray of food in Serena's lap, and then threw herself onto her friend.<p>

"We were really scared that you were going to die," said Shauna.

"So was I," responded Serena. When Shauna stepped back, Tierno hugged Serena next, followed by Trevor, and finally Calem. "How are you all doing?" she asked them before looking down at her food: soup that was just some pale yellow broth with noodles and chunks of vegetables, a cup of Jell-O, and an apple.

"My arm's broken, but otherwise I'm good," said Trevor, holding up his cast-bound arm. Serena winced, guessing that his injury was a result of the blast somehow.

"Our parents almost didn't let us come back up here after we flew back to Vaniville," added Calem. "But I knew your mom would want to see you, and we didn't want to leave you alone here too long."

"I mean, I have the nurse to keep me company," shrugged Serena as she scooped up some soup with her spoon. Besides a hint of salt, the soup was quite bland.

"You've also got a bunch of fans who want to come in and see you, but the hospital staff is just restricting it to family and close friends today," said Tierno.

"Hmm. I didn't realize Governor Pontmercy counted as a close friend."

Her friends all looked at each other. "I don't really know what to think about her," Shauna finally said.

"Neither do I," said Serena, "and she even came in to introduce herself to me. All the charges against me have been dropped, too."

"That's awfully nice of her," said Calem. "She's asked us if we're interested in going Team Flare hunting."

"Are you?" asked Serena before ingesting another spoonful of soup.

"After the benefit concert I'm planning. I want to raise money to help people affected by Lumiose's destruction," Tierno answered.

"The people that survived don't have homes, or clothing, or food, or much of anything," added Trevor.

"I'll make a donation once I get out of here," offered Serena. Her friends were such good people compared to her, she thought. Better than she could ever be.

It was quiet briefly, during which time Serena debated whether or not to come clean to them. Confessing was the right thing to do in her mind, even if it cost her friendship with the others. Then again, she wasn't sure that saying anything now counted as "using discretion."

"Did you four get out of the city in time?" she asked them, trying to keep conversation moving and about anything other than her experiences.

"No," admitted Tierno. "We were trying to find ways to get down to their HQ and help you."

"It's a miracle you survived," she commented before starting on her Jell-O, meanwhile wishing that the four of them had made it down there in time. Things could have played out differently.

"It was Professor Sycamore's idea," added Trevor.

Serena looked at Trevor skeptically.

"Professor Sycamore's realized that he was wrong to turn you in, Serena, and he wanted to make it up to you," Shauna said in Augustine's defense.

"Well where is he now?" asked Serena, not moved by Shauna's words. Was it fair of her to still feel so coldly towards Augustine? Shauna wasn't one to lie, after all, and life was too short to hold onto bitterness.

"He'll be in after us, even though he left the hospital for a while," said Trevor.

The room fell silent again as she considered what Trevor and Shauna had said, and as she wondered where Augustine was. Was he all right? Was he truly sorry? If he were to walk into the room right now, what would she say to him?

"Oh Serena! Did you hear what the Elite, erm, Three announced today?" Calem suddenly piped up, his eyes burning with excitement as he fished for a way to change the subject.

"What?"

"They've officially removed Malva from her spot in the Elite Four, meaning there's a vacancy, and any Trainer with all eight Kalos Gym Badges can apply to take her spot!"

"Go for it!" said Serena encouragingly. "I'll see if the Champion can put in a good word for you," she added with a smirk, but then the smirk faltered.

"She's gone missing, and if she's found alive she's going straight to jail," said Shauna.

There was a beat of silence, during which Serena's mind wandered back into her feelings of guilt and thinking about Pontmercy.

"Really, though, the hands holding power literally changed overnight. Do you guys think she has some sort of angle?"

"Maybe we should keep tabs on her and her administration, to see if something's up," suggested Calem.

Serena looked at him knowingly. "Why do you think I'm going to go with her to track down the rest of Team Flare?"

* * *

><p>Shauna, Calem, Trevor, and Tierno stayed and talked with Serena for a couple of hours: Calem speculated about what the Elite Four application process would be, Tierno started visualizing what his benefit concert would look like, Trevor mentioned how relieved he was that his sister was all right, and Shauna repeated over and over just how happy she was that Serena was alive. The nurse eventually chased them out, insisting that Serena needed to get some rest.<p>

An hour passed. Then another. Serena leaned back into her bed, feeling the firm pillow under her head. She had no business being alive, she told herself. So many were dead thanks to her, in a sloppy attempt to stop Team Flare, and she sat in the hospital having meaningless conversations with her mom and friends. Meanwhile, there were others who had lost their family and friends and homes, grieving and trying hard to figure out how to cope. If presented the opportunity, she would trade places with any of the victims, so they could live and she would be dead, in an attempt to restore some semblance of justice to the universe.

On the nightstand next to her bed was the remote control to the TV. She reached for it and used it to turn on the TV, flipping through channels until she found news coverage. What she saw filled her with dread and horror: ground covered in gray and white ash, stones and wood and bricks strewn across the earth chaotically, emergency crews picking through the ruin for survivors, and a Machoke pulling someone out of the wreckage of Café Soleil. An off-screen reporter was talking about something, but Serena paid no attention to those words. Her eyes flickered to the scrolling banner at the bottom, just in time to see the updated casualty estimate: four thousand five hundred and twenty-eight humans, six hundred and three Pokemon.


	33. Chapter 33

**THIRTY-THREE**

Serena turned off the TV and took deep, even breaths, all in an attempt to hold back tears that threatened to fall. It was no use, though, as she soon found herself sobbing into her hands and blanket. Once she felt like there were no more tears to cry, Serena wiped her face dry with her hand and leaned back in her bed. She felt pathetic, crying like this. It wouldn't bring back any of the dead, or rebuild Lumiose. Thank goodness the door to her room was closed, so nobody could see her.

There was a soft, timid knock on the door. "Come in," she said hoarsely, and watched as the door slowly opened. It felt like time froze when she saw Augustine step into the room, wearing a baggy T-shirt and jeans that were too short, and holding a single pink rose in his hand.

She watched him, and he watched her. Neither spoke, but Serena saw it all in those big, expressive eyes of his. Augustine looked at her with complete disbelief, mixed with happiness, like she was an angel that graced him with her presence. He soon turned his eyes away, however, choosing to focus on his feet.

"H-how are you doing?" Serena asked him. Several thoughts ran through her mind: thank goodness he survived, she really wanted to hug and kiss him, but he didn't deserve kisses because he betrayed her, where did he find new clothes, how would he feel if he knew she blew up Lumiose . . . .

"I . . . I'm well," said Augustine in response, still not looking at her.

Serena nodded awkwardly. "Good," she said quickly.

There was a moment of tense, uncomfortable silence, during which Augustine shifted back and forth on his feet and Serena pondered what she should say next, if anything.

"Serena . . . ." Augustine said, finally making eye contact with her. "I-I-uh . . . erm . . . um . . . ."

"You sold me out to Team Flare," she reminded him grimly as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Yes, I did," admitted Augustine. "I know it's not an excuse, but he threatened to take my Pokemon away and subject them to that procedure."

"That makes you a good Trainer but a lousy boyfriend."

Augustine nodded in agreement. "The lousiest. I was a fool, and a coward, and I'm so sorry. I'll always be sorry. You don't need to forgive me, and I understand if you don't want to be with me anymore."

Serena bit her lip. "Look, Augustine –" she started, taking a split second to imagine their roles reversed after she admitted to destroying Lumiose. "I would still like to, you know, be a couple. But – but –"

"You don't trust me anymore," interrupted Augustine.

"Not completely," said Serena. "My friends told me that you came up with the idea to go down to the Team Flare facility and try to help me."

"I Mega Evolved Garchomp, and it was amazing. You should have seen it. We fought our way out of Geosenge just fine, but the air patrols outside the prison were too much for Garchomp to handle, so we decided to turn back to the city instead," Augustine recounted.

"Some knight in shining armor you are," quipped Serena.

"I met up with your friends there, and we were on our way when . . . ."

There was a beat of silence.

"Serena, I've lost almost everything now. My whole life was in Lumiose, after all," said Augustine. He shuffled forward slightly, closer to her bed. "But those were all material things. All I really need, all that's really important, is right here." He held his hands forward, gesturing towards Serena. "You mean so much to me, and I swear on my life that I'm going to do whatever it takes to become a man worthy of you."

Not after he finds out, Serena thought. Nonetheless, his words touched her, and she held out her hand towards him. Augustine stepped closer, and closer, until finally he lunged forward, throwing his arms around Serena and hugging her even tighter than he did at their midnight meeting. Serena hugged him back, hiding her face in his shoulder and ignoring how stiff the fabric of his shirt was. He was rubbing her back in a circular motion, and she smiled when she felt his lips tenderly press against the top of her head. It was easy, losing herself again, feeling like there was nothing else in the world but her and him as they wordlessly held one another.

She turned her head to the side, resting her cheek and ear on his chest, hearing and feeling his heartbeat. "So what are you going to do now?" she asked him.

"_Ruiné le moment,"_ muttered Augustine. "I, uh, haven't gotten that far yet. But I suppose . . . I could build another lab and carry on my research as usual, even though this is all obviously a major setback –"

Of course she ruined his career, Serena chastised herself.

"- Or I could open a café. In the meantime, though, your mother has graciously offered me the guest bedroom of her house."

"I'm going home to Vaniville . . . we'll finally be living together, but with my mom," snickered Serena. "I'll have an extra set of eyes to keep an eye on you and make sure you're being trustworthy at all times."

Augustine chuckled softly. He pushed himself back a few inches, allowing Serena to see his tired yet handsome smile, and kissed her forehead. She felt her face warm, and she diverted her eyes away from his. The affection from him was nice while it lasted, but it didn't completely chase away the worries building up inside of her. Sure, everything might work out for them, but there was a chance that their relationship would end once one of them said or did something that upset the other. Right then, she feared that she would be the one to make the first mistake.

"Serena?" Augustine's voice was low and full of concern. "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," she said automatically, extracting herself from his arms and sitting back.

"Well, 'nothing' seems to occupy your mind too frequently for my taste."

"My mind doesn't care about your taste," snapped Serena. Augustine flinched slightly at her tone. "I'm sorry," she added hastily. "Just . . . ." How could she expect him to build trust and credibility with her when she hesitated to share what was on her mind? Especially when all of his caring and desire to help were expressed so clearly in his eyes?

She sighed, and before she could stop herself, the truth about Lumiose's destruction rolled off of her tongue. Afterwards, she expected Augustine to hug her again, or to be disgusted and leave. Instead, he took her hands into his own, keeping his focus on them.

"I should have been there with you. I don't know if my personal credentials and access code could have done anything to stop it, but I should have been there to at least try."

"No, don't blame yourself for this. It was all me. I- I shouldn't have done it. I should have just let it fire at Castelia, then gone and destroyed it from the outside."

"Maybe, but now Team Flare's hold on Kalos is pretty much gone. Think of how many lives have been saved in the long run," said Augustine practically.

"I'm sure that's a great comfort to the families of victims here and in Aspertia City," retorted Serena.

Augustine sighed. "Serena, please don't beat yourself up over this. I think that we should focus on rebuilding and moving on, and giving peace and comfort to those still here, because worrying over those we lost isn't going to bring them back." He looked into her eyes and offered her a comforting smile.

"I know," said Serena. She wanted to tell him that it was easy for him not to worry too much over the dead, because he didn't kill them.

He leaned forward and hugged her again, rocking her back and forth as he mumbled words in Kalosian. Except for catching "_Je suis hereux que tu_," she didn't understand what he was saying, but she inferred that it had something to do with her being alive.

"One question, Augustine," she piped up. "If you were there, in my situation, ten minutes left and inside that central room with no way out, what would you have done?"

Augustine hesitated. "I suppose . . . that I would have done the same thing you did."

Serena shook her head. "And I think you've been spending too much time around Team Flare and all their talk about 'the greater good.'"

"I have, _chèrie_, and I'm glad to be rid of those bastards."

* * *

><p>Serena scooted over to the side of her hospital bed to allow Augustine a small space to sit, and over the next half hour the two of them sat together, silently cuddling. Even though he wanted her to not dwell on what she did, she couldn't help it. Why did she get to enjoy time with her boyfriend when there were those out there who had lost their significant others? Did she even deserve Augustine? To her, it was a miracle that he still wanted to be with her, and she briefly suspected that he was only giving her a second chance because she offered him one.<p>

She thought back to October and November, when they first started dating, back when she expected their relationship to assume a usual trajectory of important milestones happening after appropriate intervals of time. It was the end of February, the time when she originally thought they would be moving in together in Lumiose, and she ruined that. She should have been arguing with Augustine over what color to paint the walls in their bedroom, not laying with him in a narrow hospital bed while wondering whether or not it was even right for him to be there in the first place. Serena wanted to know where the part of her capable of rational decision making had wandered off to, and she guessed it got lost somewhere on the way home from that fateful Christmas party.

"I just now noticed you have a TV in here. That's nice," Augustine suddenly commented as he readjusted the arm he had draped around her shoulder.

"Yeah. Haven't gotten to watch it really," said Serena, thinking back to the few minutes of news coverage she watched.

Augustine reached for the remote on the nightstand and turned on the TV. "Out in the waiting room, some people got sick of watching the news, so they went to the on-demand feature and put on a silly movie."

"Would those people be my friends?" asked Serena as she watched Augustine access the on-demand feature. It sounded like something Tierno would do, finding something silly and fun to try and relieve peoples' stresses. That must be what Augustine was trying to do now, she thought, although she doubted how well it would work.

"No, actually. Your friends, last I heard, were looking for volunteer opportunities, and your mother is going to meet Diantha in Coumarine to retrieve your Pokemon for you . . . this has a whole subcategory dedicated to movies made in Kanto? Let's see what they have . . . 'Pokemorphs,' 'Dances with Growlithe,' 'Sleepless in Saffron,' 'Crobat-Man Begins –'"

"I love 'Sleepless in Saffron.' You'd probably hate it, since it's not one of the classic Kalosian romance films or whatever," said Serena. She had been meaning to sit down and watch the Crobat-Man movie trilogy for some time, now that she thought about it.

Augustine took a moment to read the brief summary of the film given on the menu. "It's about a Pikachu that tries to get its Trainer in Saffron City to meet and fall in love with a woman living on Cinnabar Island? Sounds cute." He moved to press "Play" on the remote, but then someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," Serena called after letting out an exasperated sigh.

Claire Pontmercy entered the room, pausing for a moment when she saw Serena and Augustine. "Oh, I'm sorry. Am I interrupting something?"

"No," responded Serena. "If there was something happening, I wouldn't have told you to come in."

"Ah, yes. You're right, Serena." Pontmercy grimaced slightly at Serena's response, but she soon turned her attention to Augustine. "Professor Sycamore, I presume?"

"That's me," said Augustine, nodding his head in affirmation.

"Good to meet you, Professor. Anyway, Serena, I was just dropping by to let you know that I plan to give an address to discuss what has happened to Lumiose City and how we plan to rebuild. If you are discharged from the hospital by then, I would love for you to say a few words."

"Um, sure," agreed Serena.

Pontmercy smirked in delight. "Excellent, thank you. Now, I'm sorry, but I would like Professor Sycamore to join me for the remainder of the afternoon and evening. I believe his experiences in Team Flare have provided him with knowledge and tools we need to find the rest of them."

"It's possible," said Augustine as he pushed himself up out of the bed. He looked longingly at Serena, and then leaned in to cup her head in his hands and plant a quick kiss on her lips. "_À bientôt, mon amour,"_ he whispered.

_Mon amour_? That was new. Even if Augustine was just saying that, thinking about it made a smile spread across her face.

Serena watched him leave the room, accompanied by Pontmercy. Who did that woman think she was, barging in like that? Sure, she had a region to run and a major city to avenge, but didn't she see the two people that wanted to escape the world for a brief moment and just enjoy one anothers' company? She gazed at the closed door for a moment, once again wondering if Pontmercy had a hidden agenda – or worse, what if she intended to arrest Augustine? Maybe the universe had heard her thoughts, about how she didn't deserve to have him in her life, and it was making those thoughts a reality. Or maybe she was just being ridiculous. If Augustine could figure out a way to keep Ampharos from having the life sucked out of her, then surely he could keep himself out of prison.

Deciding she wanted to wait and watch "Sleepless in Saffron" with Augustine, Serena started up "Crobat-Man Begins" instead. The movie opened with the tragic murder of young Eustace Payne's parents, followed by his globe-trotting days that came to an end when he was taken in by a secret group of warriors and spies, meeting the Zubat that would become his companion, his return to civilization, and his dedication to become a symbol feared by those who wished evil upon the world. Even if the twists and turns of the plot were old, she still enjoyed the dialogue and the one-liners and the pseudo-philosophical musings of the main characters.

"Crobat-Man Begins" ended, and she selected its sequel, "The Winged Knight," to play next. She zoned out through most of the film, except to listen to the main villain's most memorable speech, too consumed by thoughts of her conversation with Augustine. _"You can die a hero, or live long enough to turn into the villain"_ was the last line she paid any attention to until the movie ended. When she told everyone the truth at Pontmercy's address, would they consider her a villain? Would it have been better for her to have died down in the facility and be remembered as a hero?

The nurse came in once the movie ended to serve her dinner, and then Serena started the final movie in the trilogy, "The Winged Knight Rises." She watched the movie, making herself focus on it and nothing else . . . until the main villain began overpowering Crobat-Man in hand-to-hand combat. Every punch and kick were blurs in her vision, and then the villain clenched his massive hands around Crobat-Man's neck and began to squeeze hard. In that moment, her mind flashed back to Teleurac and the deadly intent in his eyes as he strangled her, and the mental image felt too real for her comfort.

Serena stopped the movie and bent over, clenching on the blanket with shaking hands as she waited for the dizzy feeling in her head and the sudden fear for her life to go away. Why was she scared all of the sudden? It was just a movie, she was in no real danger, but it wouldn't go away, no matter how much she told herself to calm down. In fact, telling herself to calm down only seemed to make things worse, as she stressed over her inability to do so. Her heart was racing, she had difficulty breathing, and she didn't have the faintest idea of what to do. The room was spinning, nothing felt real, she felt like a passive observer as feelings and sensations and thoughts swirled about and compressed and imploded and exploded uncontrollably – what was happening?

The moment she started hyperventilating, she made herself stop and take a deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and then exhale. It was hard at first to establish a steady rhythm, but the fear and disorientation slowly went away. She reminded herself that it was just a movie, it was just a movie, she was safe and nobody was trying to hurt her.

She jumped when she heard a knock on the door, and her heart started hammering. Instead of granting permission to enter, she stared blankly at the door, thinking of how nice it would be to have her Pokemon there with her just in case it was someone from Team Flare or an angry mob of people who found out what she did.

Evidently impatient, the person on the other side opened the door, going slowly to minimize its creaking. When she saw it was Augustine, Serena let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Ah, you're still awake? I thought you were sleeping . . . Serena, _chèrie_, are you all right?" Augustine wasted no time in crossing the distance to her bed, seating himself on the edge of it and placing one of his hands on top of hers.

It took a few seconds for Serena to register that Augustine was actually in the room with her, but feeling his hand on hers helped. "Oh, yeah. I was watching a movie and it freaked me out a little, I guess. Reminded me of – well, you know." She feared that saying Teleurac's name out loud would bring it all back.

Part of her expected Augustine to tell her how silly she was to feel something like that from just a movie, but instead he looked at her with a serious, understanding expression. "I was only going to be here for a little while to say good-night, but do you want me to stay?"

Serena nodded. "Please," she squeaked while scooting over to make room for him.

Once the two of them got appropriately cozy under the hospital blanket, Serena did not immediately fall asleep. Instead she lay awake for a while, distracted by the possibility of another nightmare or all-too realistic mental image of something else that would elicit a reaction. Augustine soon stole her attention, though, as she made herself pay attention to the warmth of his chest against her back, slow even breaths exhaled into her hair and neck, and his arm that was draped over her side. She found his hand and took it in hers, held it in close to her heart, and closed her eyes. She knew it was silly to think so, but she hoped that having him there with her would chase off bad feelings – at the very least, she felt like something normal had returned to her life.


	34. Chapter 34

**THIRTY-FOUR**

Vaniville Town looked as new and foreign to Serena as it did the first day she came to the little town. As Charizard touched down on the ground in front of her house, Serena was struck by just how calm and peaceful it was: no hustle and bustle from the big city life she had grown accustomed to, no big crowds of people, and no sudden loud noises . . . up until the point where the ground rumbled as Rosie the Rhyhorn dashed out from the front yard to greet them.

Grace slid off of Charizard and stooped down to greet her old racing partner with gentle pats and strokes on the head. Meanwhile, Serena hopped down and walked around to give her Fire-type a long, heartfelt hug before recalling her. Having her Pokemon back – for good this time – felt right, natural, like a severed limb had been reattached. Serena swore to herself that she and her team would never be separated again.

When Serena entered the house, it felt like she was walking into a dream. Had she actually lived here a long time ago, in this house that was familiar but at the same time strange? Nothing had changed: everything in the living room was arranged the way she remembered it, the paint was still peeling slightly on the bottom step of the stairs, and the only thing different about the kitchen was the large stock pot on the stove and the aroma of simmering onions filling the air. She meandered through the living room, taking it all in while in the background Grace lifted the lid off the pot and stirred its contents.

Any minute now, she expected everything to unravel. Her being home would just be a ruse, some elaborate trick played on her by Pontmercy or even Team Flare. Malva could be the puppet master behind it all, for all she knew. Or for some reason Augustine told Pontmercy about Serena being responsible for Lumiose's destruction – if that was the case, she would never speak to him again. That was something she needed to say herself, on her own terms.

"Serena, honey?"

She jumped and whipped her head around to see her mother still at the stove, wooden spoon in hand and concern on her face.

"It smells good," she commented in regards to the contents of the stock pot.

"Kalosian onion soup," said Grace. "Augustine spent all morning chopping onions."

Serena's mouth formed a faint smile. "Where is he now?" she asked as she slowly walked back into the kitchen.

"Buying groceries. Apparently the bread I got a few days ago isn't fresh enough, and we can't have a proper onion soup without Gruyère cheese melted on top."

"You really can't," said Serena.

"He takes food and cooking seriously, doesn't he? I'm not complaining, because he's very good at it. And the house has never been cleaner."

Serena eyed Grace skeptically. "_Augustine_ cleaned the house? The entire house?" She recalled his clutter-filled apartment and the dirty dishes in the sink.

Grace nodded. "In the week and a half he's been here and you've been in the hospital, I've mostly seen him either cook, clean, or play outside with Rosie. You have excellent taste in men, Serena. Hold onto that one, unless someone younger and better comes along."

"That's not going to happen," said Serena as she rolled her eyes. Her face was starting to feel warmer.

Someone knocked on the front door. Eager to remove herself from a discussion with her mother about her boyfriend, Serena rushed to the door and opened it to see Pontmercy, who wore a black trench coat over her suit.

"Ah, here you are!" Pontmercy exclaimed as she wore her best politician smile. "The hospital staff told me you went home already. How are you doing?"

"I'm, uh, okay. As okay as it gets," answered Serena.

"Good! It's fortunate you're out today, because I'm actually about to go to Anistar and give my address. The one I told you about? You said you would make an appearance and say a few words?"

"Oh, yeah! That! I'm not exactly suitable for public exposure right now, though," said Serena as she looked up and down herself. Although her sweater concealed most of her body, she thought of the scar tissue on her shoulder and chest, and the scratches and gashes up and down her arms and hands.

"It's not scheduled to start for another four hours. That'll give us time to fly there and for my personal team of stylists to make you camera ready." Pontmercy said confidently.

"Okay . . . you want to go now?" asked Serena. "Or do you want to come in for a bit?"

"I would love to, thank you," said Pontmercy. Serena stepped to the side and allowed the Governor to walk in and proceed to the kitchen, where she introduced herself to Grace.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" asked Grace while she and Pontmercy shook hands.

"I just came to visit before Serena accompanies me to Anistar City for the afternoon," said Pontmercy conversationally.

"That's right, you're giving that speech today," said Grace.

Pontmercy nodded in affirmation. "Serena, that reminds me. I took the liberty of having a speech drafted for you already, so you wouldn't have to worry about what to say. In difficult times such as these, I know it's hard to find the right words to express what you're feeling." She then reached into her coat pocket and pulled out some notecards that were clipped together, and handed them to Serena.

"Um, thanks," said Serena, not immediately sure of how to feel about her speech being written for her. She supposed it was a thing that politicians did all the time, to make themselves sound better and to sugar-coat important issues – and lie through their teeth, as was the case with Teleurac. She looked down at the notecards and started reading the words written on them.

_Citizens of Kalos, the recent tragic events in Lumiose City have left my heart heavy, filled with the utmost grief. I mourn the thousands of lives lost: people with jobs and hopes and dreams of a brighter future, and the Pokemon who worked and lived and loved alongside them. They are all gone, but they will live on in the treasured thoughts and memories of their loved ones._

She stopped reading for a moment, waiting for her mind to clear itself of the guilty thoughts that popped up. Memorializing those that were dead thanks to her seemed odd . . . .

_Those of us still here can learn from what has happened. It goes without saying that everyone affected by the tragedy now has a greater love and appreciation for the people in their lives, as well as a greater love and appreciation for life itself. We should all live each moment to its fullest. However, we must also do whatever it takes to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again. Alexandre Teleurac was delusional and power hungry, like his predecessor Lysandre Fleur-de-Lis. He was the one responsible for Lumiose's destruction. As you are all aware, I opposed his regime from the moment I learned that he was the new face of Team Flare. I don't know why he decided to destroy Lumiose rather than Castelia – was everything he had done up to then a front, an act? Had he given up on his plans to bring Unova under his heel? Had he given up on Kalos? We'll never know the answer to that question. All I know is that I tried to stop him, but I was too late. _

Lies, Serena thought. All of it. Her hands started to shake. She didn't want to stand in front of all of Kalos and lie to them.

_Although I was born and raised in Kanto, I now consider Kalos my home. I started my career as a Pokemon Trainer here, I became League Champion here, I fell in love here, and my grasp of the region's native language gets a little better with each passing day._

The bit where she "fell in love" better refer to Kalos and Pokemon, she thought irately.

_From now on, I will do everything in my power to protect our beautiful region from any that may harm it, and I promise that I will not fail again. This is why I am allying myself with Governor Pontmercy, to help her seek out those members of Team Flare that are still at large and bring them to justice, so that we may have justice for Lumiose City._

Serena stopped reading there, for her mind was already made up. "I'm not doing it," she stated, dropping the notecards onto the floor.

Pontmercy's expression soured. "Why not?"

"Because . . ." Serena then remembered that she had never told Pontmercy the truth about Lumiose's destruction, but doing so now didn't seem like a smart idea. "It doesn't sound like me. I'm already a public figure, and – um – the public knows who and how I am. They'll know that those words don't sound like something I would say."

Grace stood back, watching her daughter and Pontmercy, and looking mildly perplexed.

"Then you can paraphrase it as you see fit. Just make sure to get in all the key points: how you're grieving with everyone else, how delusional he was, how you tried to stop him, and how you're teaming up with me to –"

"That's another thing, Governor. You want me to team up with you? Publicly support you, when I don't have a good reason to?"

Pontmercy scowled. "You have reason to, Serena. I'm the Governor of Kalos. I have made it my mission to find the rest of Team Flare and make sure they are punished to the fullest extent of the law. And I _will_."

"What is this, Governor? When we first met, you told me that I have every right to be suspicious of politicians. And now that I am acting on a gut feeling based on my suspicion and skepticism, you don't like it?" Serena said, mentally kicking herself. She shouldn't have said anything, or have made her mind up so quickly. This could have been her chance to confess what she had done.

"I suppose you're right," Pontmercy sighed. A long pause followed, in which she looked past Serena, eyes unfocused and mouth frowning as she got lost in thought.

"But Serena, the truth is I need your help. Every day, I get calls and messages from citizens, telling me I have no constitutional precedence to be Governor. They can't see that I want to protect them from those who would do them harm. Yet if I had you at my side, Serena – the people adore you, they'll listen to you –"

Serena shook her head. "Your reputation is not my problem. If you want people to be on your side, give them a damn good reason to be."

Pontmercy's eyes narrowed as her glare intensified. After a few seconds of quiet, she spoke. "You know, Serena, I didn't have to drop the charges against you. I did so out of the goodness of my heart, so you wouldn't have to go back to prison. And what you're saying and doing is a poor way of repaying my kindness."

"What are you going to do? Send me back to prison?" said Serena, her voice low. "That will definitely do wonders for your popularity. Also, I know how to escape."

It was a tense moment as the two women stared daggers at one another. Serena wondered if Pontmercy really would try to have her incarcerated for this, or if she would act out somehow against her mom and friends.

"So there's no way I can convince you to change your mind?" asked Pontmercy.

"Nope," answered Serena shortly.

Pontmercy sighed. "I see. Well, I suppose I should be on my way then." She nodded to Grace. "A pleasure meeting you, Madame Carlyle." From there, Pontmercy marched to the front door of the house, but when she placed her hand on the doorknob, she paused and looked back to Serena.

"But if you do come around, Serena, and decide to do the right thing, give me a call." With that, Pontmercy exited the house.

Serena watched from the kitchen window as Pontmercy flew northeast on the back of her Pidgeot. Once Pontmercy and Pidgeot were only a small dot in the sky, Serena made eye contact with her mother and said "She wanted me to lie about who really destroyed Lumiose, Mom. I couldn't do it."

"Well you didn't _have_ to," said Grace. "You could have gone to speak but dramatically throw those note cards on the ground and give your own speech, like they do in the movies."

"I know." Life wasn't a movie, though. She watched as Grace lifted the lid off the stock pot and stirred the onions inside with a wooden spoon. The aroma of caramelizing onions wafted through the air once more.

"And the more I think about it, honey, I think that you won't be hated and reviled too much for it. Sure, lots of people will still be unhappy because their homes are gone and their loved ones are dead. But you had a good reason. I think they'll understand."

Was she just saying that because it was her duty as a mother? "You sure?" asked Serena timidly.

"Somewhat," said Grace, extending her arms forward towards her daughter. Serena accepted the invitation and stood with Grace in a hug for a few moments.

"You do plan on telling all of Kalos, right?" Grace inquired once Serena broke away from the embrace.

"Yeah, soon. Before the year's out. I just – right now doesn't feel like the right time. Maybe for now the focus should be on recovery and rebuilding and moving on. Placing blame and pointing fingers can wait . . . unless Pontmercy pulls some kind of stunt. I'll have to keep an eye on her."

* * *

><p>Seeing the ruins of Lumiose on TV was one thing. Actually standing among them was another. When Serena set foot in Lumiose City, exactly two weeks after the blast, she could only stand transfixed on the spot. She had difficulty wrapping her head around the fact that the flat earth, covered in debris of stone and bricks and wood and plaster and metal, was once the largest and most vibrant city in Kalos. The horizon felt so barren without Prism Tower standing tall and proud; right now, cranes were the tallest things in the city as they were utilized to knock down structures that were mostly destroyed and beyond salvaging. Around the city, crews consisting of both people and Pokemon worked on cleaning up debris and carting it away for disposal. Tents and pavilions had been set up, to provide food, clothing, shelter, and medical care to survivors who had remained in the destroyed city because they had nowhere else to go.<p>

She wondered if the news of what happened here had reached Unova yet. Did the people of Castelia City realize how close they were to suffering this fate? Would they ever learn or truly appreciate what it cost to save them?

From where she stood (in a clear spot that she assumed used to be where Café Soleil once stood) Serena watched the activity at the cluster of tents and pavilions several yards in front of her. A little girl near one pavilion received a sandwich from a volunteer and responded with a big smile, despite her missing front teeth. While eating, the little girl sat down on the ground, took a piece of bread from the sandwich, and gave it to her Zigzagoon to eat. Who was that little girl, Serena wondered. Where were her parents? Were her parents even still alive? Was Zigzagoon all she had left in the world?

She closed her eyes, hoping to keep in the tears that formed, and she bowed her head. What business did she have being here, since she was the one who chose to destroy the city and thousands of lives? Or maybe she needed to stand here and look upon the fruits of her labor. Nonetheless, she felt the strong urge to leave, now that she had seen it in person, although she knew that her friends would come join her very soon.

"Serena? What are you doing here?" Upon hearing Augustine's voice, Serena opened her eyes, looked to her right, and saw him walking her way.

"Seeing it for myself," she said as her voice cracked and a few tears rolled down her cheek. "What are you doing?"

"I was digging through the ruins of my lab, to see if I could save anything before cleanup crews showed up," explained Augustine. "There's not much. Not only did most of the building and things inside get destroyed during the blast, but Malva's Talonflame burned much of it down beforehand. I did recover a few Mega Stones from my collection, though, and a book or two, and – oh yes –" His hand dove into his pocket, retrieving a small box wrapped up in silver paper. It took a moment, but Serena recognized it.

"This was supposed to be your Christmas present," he said, holding the box out to her. "Go ahead, open it."

"Augustine, I can't take it," said Serena. She thought of the little girl and her Zigzagoon, and all the others like them who now had next to nothing.

"I promise it's not an expensive diamond ring or anything like that. It's . . . well, you'll see. Please, Serena." Augustine took one of her hands in his, opened up her palm, and placed the box in it. "If you want to punish yourself, find a more constructive way to do so."

Suspecting that he would only insist further should she refuse it again, Serena undid the ribbon on the box and gingerly tore off the wrapping paper. Underneath the wrapping paper was a small black velvet box that bore the logo of one of Lumiose's renowned jewelry shops, which she remembered as one that sold a variety of jewelry at a wide range of prices. She opened the box and saw a necklace with a silver chain and a crystal fire opal set in a circular pendant.

Her mouth gaped open, and she noted how Augustine watched her expectantly. "It's – it's beautiful," she said, tilting the box at a slight angle to watch the colors inside the stone flicker and dance and change in the sunlight.

"I thought you'd like it," Augustine said with a grin. He reached out towards the box, but before he could grab it Serena hand closed it and stashed it in her coat pocket.

"I'll put it on later," she explained. From there, she looked past him at the pavilions where volunteers mingled with survivors. The little girl she had seen earlier was now giving her Zigzagoon belly rubs while two adults stood nearby and watched. Her vision was soon obstructed by Augustine, who moved in to hug her. She hugged back, resting her head on his chest, enjoying how warm and close he was. It was another moment when she felt like things would be okay or at least somewhat normal-feeling, even though they were both standing amidst ruin and debris.

As Augustine held her, Serena once again thought about Lumiose City. She made up her mind to help rebuild it in any way she could, to suggest that a memorial be put in the center of Centrico Plaza, and to ensure that the victims did not die in vain . . . even if it meant teaming up with Pontmercy later on down the road. Admitting the truth was a given, as soon as she felt the time was right. For now, what gave her hope was the idea of Kalos coming together to become stronger and work to create the beautiful future that so many dreamed about.

Augustine softly spoke a few words in Kalosian, and Serena didn't catch them. Assuming they meant something endearing, she hugged him tighter and closed her eyes as he kissed the top of her head.

She heard the songlike cry of an Altaria above her head, and she looked up to see the Pokemon making its descent. Altaria bore Calem and Shauna, and they were followed by Tierno on Talonflame and Trevor on Aerodactyl. Serena broke away from Augustine and ran out to meet her friends as their Pokemon touched down on the ground.

"Hey guys!" she called out to them. Shauna hopped off Altaria and greeted Serena with a hug while Trevor and Tierno took their turns greeting Augustine.

"You got here early," remarked Trevor as he recalled Aerodactyl.

"I wonder why," said Calem flatly, glancing over to Augustine.

"How're you feeling, Lady S?" asked Shauna.

Serena smiled at her friend. "I feel . . . I feel fine."

"Just 'fine?'" pressed Tierno.

"Hey, 'fine' is a perfectly acceptable way to feel. It's slightly better than average," said Serena. "Say, you guys, do you all want to go somewhere tonight when we're done here? Just the five of us?"

Her friends responded with a chorus of "Yeah, sure!" and "Why not?"

"Good, thanks." Serena decided that evening, when it was just the five of them, was when she would tell her friends that she destroyed Lumiose, and very importantly why she did it. She tried with all her might to stave off thoughts of what their reactions might be, but she alternated between predicting that they'd react the way her mom and Augustine did or by being shocked and disgusted with her.

"Hey, guys, we're supposed to report to the pavilion in two minutes. We should get going," said Trevor as he pointed at the cluster of tents and pavilions.

"Which one is it again?" asked Calem as he took a step in that direction.

"I think I signed us all up as a cleanup crew for today, and we're handing out food tomorrow, so we'll want that orange one over there," said Tierno.

Before setting off with her friends, Serena rushed back to Augustine's side, pulled out the box that contained her necklace, and handed it to him.

"Hold onto this for me?" she said sweetly.

"Sure," he said, taking the box and sticking it back in his pocket.

"_Merci, mon cher,_" Serena said, hoping she didn't sound too corny. "I want to try it on for you tonight." When she saw his smile, she couldn't help but smile as well.

With a kiss on the cheek and a "See you later," Serena left Augustine's side and rejoined her friends. Together, the five of them made the way to the orange pavilion Tierno mentioned, talking and enjoying one another's company as if they were the fresh, optimistic teenagers that set out on their journeys three years ago. Being with her friends in that moment, Serena felt as if the world was already a little more beautiful.

_~ The End ~_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Hey everyone! One last time, I just want to thank you all for reading the story, leaving reviews, offering to save Serena when she was in serious mortal peril, etc. I've had a good time writing this story, and I've been thinking of ideas for other stories. Right now, they're mostly ideas for drabbles, but I've also thought of giving Lysandre the "Wicked" treatment. So . . . my next thing will be posted when it's posted. May you all go out and find other fanfics to read, and have good lives!

- Kiki


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